Two Kenyan health innovators named runners-up in Africa Prize for Engineering
Nurse Naom Monari's mobile dialysis clinic and Dr Alice Muhuhu's AI heart device each won KSh 1.7 million (£10,000) from the Royal Academy of Engineering. Niger's Mamane Kabirou Ousseini took the top prize of KSh 8.5 million (£50,000).
Two Kenyan innovators were among four finalists in the 2026 Africa Prize for Engineering Innovation, The Star reported. Naom Monari founded Renal Roads, a mobile dialysis clinic. Dr Alice Muhuhu developed MoyoECG, a portable heart device. The prize is awarded by the Royal Academy of Engineering and recognises African innovators solving major problems on the continent. The finalists were chosen from a group of 16 entrepreneurs who completed eight months of training and mentoring. The overall winner was Nigerien engineer Mamane Kabirou Ousseini. He built Likita Care, a locally made system that monitors patients' vital signs, heart activity and pregnancy-related conditions. He is the first engineer from Niger to take part in and win the prize. "Winning the Africa Prize is a dream come true," Ousseini said. Monari, a trained nurse, saw the problem while working in Kenya's public health system. Most dialysis centres are in major towns and cities. Rural patients can travel up to 200 kilometres each way, sometimes twice a week. Some miss treatment because they cannot afford the trip. Missed sessions can lead to serious complications and even death. Her research in 2022-2023, funded by the International Development Research Centre, confirmed the pattern. It led to Renal Roads, a clinic built inside a 40-foot shipping container mounted on a trailer.…
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