North Eastern cancer cases hit 2,437 since 2023, leaders link surge to suspected nuclear waste dumping

North Eastern Kenya has recorded 650 cancer cases in the first half of 2025, raising the total to 2,437 since 2023.

Garissa Governor Nathif Jama has linked the rising cases to alleged nuclear waste dumping in rural areas, noting that vulnerable communities are being quietly devastated.

Appearing before the National Assembly Committee on Environment on Tuesday, Nathif demanded urgent investigations to identify and hold accountable those behind the toxic activity.

He revealed that cancer cases in the region stood at 440 in 2023, 1,347 in 2024, and 650 as of June 2025, with throat cancer emerging as the most common type.

He said the illnesses are mostly being recorded in rural settlements, raising fears of prolonged exposure to harmful substances.

“We hope that this time the committee will conduct proper investigations to bring out the truth. It will be a shame if this matter is not carried out with the speed that is required,” Governor Nathif told legislators.

Supporting his concerns, Wajir South MP Mohammed Adow claimed that nuclear waste had been buried in the region in shipping containers, based on testimonies from locals who allegedly worked for the involved companies.

“When you talk to eyewitnesses, people who worked for these companies that were doing the dumping, they will tell you that they were made to dig from Monday to Friday. The material was housed in metal containers like the ones you use to ship. They were buried deep in the ground,” Adow said.

The MP said investigations alone were insufficient and called for the region to be cleaned up and the buried waste excavated.

“What we have in the North Eastern regions, in places such as Marsabit, is a crime. People need to be given confidence that those in authority are responsible enough to refuse the irresponsibility done in those past years,” he added.

Toxic nuclear waste

In 2024, former Cabinet Minister Cyrus Jirongo alleged during an interview with lawyer PLO Lumumba that the government under the late former President Daniel Arap Moi had sanctioned the dumping of toxic nuclear waste in the North Eastern region, specifically Garissa and Wajir counties.

Jirongo said he had been shown official documents confirming the activity by a well-connected lawyer with links to the political elite of the time.

"Mzee, I have information that people in the Ministry of Energy are cheating Kenyans by saying that they are looking for oil, but it is toxic waste that is being dumped in North Eastern and around that area," Jirongo said.

"I've never been in trouble like that, because I was asked, Where did you get the documents from?" Jirongo recounted his conversation with Moi, who is said to have become furious when confronted with the evidence.

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• cancer cases
• North Eastern cancer cases hit 2
• 437 since 2023

"Moi even issued threats, warning me that if I didn't reveal my sources, it would be the end of me."

Jirongo said at one point, the president's security is said to have stormed into the heated meeting between him and Moi, believing a physical altercation had occurred.

"He was ranting loudly; his security had thought I was fighting him," Jirongo recalled.

After the meeting, Moi warned Jirongo not to reveal any details of their discussion to anyone.

The claims have sparked years of friction between leaders in the region and successive governments, with repeated calls for accountability and environmental justice for affected communities.