Kenya has completed the International Atomic Energy Agency’s (IAEA) ARTEMIS mission, an international peer review of national systems for managing radioactive waste and spent fuel. The experts spent several days on the ground and then delivered their recommendations to the authorities in Nairobi, as the country moves forward with plans to introduce nuclear energy into its energy mix.
The findings were handed over by IAEA representative Anna Clarke to James Keter, Director General of the Kenya Nuclear Regulatory Authority (KNRA). The mission also assessed decommissioning and remediation activities. The government welcomed the report and asked for a comprehensive implementation plan to turn the experts’ guidance into practical measures.
The review is part of the IAEA’s Milestones approach. Kenya is in Phase 2: it is preparing legislation, institutions and safety systems, but is not yet building a power plant. At the end of this phase, the country will have to decide, with all the necessary information in hand, whether to proceed with a nuclear power programme for electricity generation. Waste is one of the 19 infrastructure issues the IAEA examines in this process, and it involves evaluating treatment, storage and disposal options for each type of waste.
Kenya has already cleared other review milestones. In October 2025, an IRRS mission examined the regulatory framework and found a strong commitment to nuclear and radiation safety, with recommendations for developing a national policy in line with IAEA standards. Another mission, IPPAS, assessed the physical protection of radioactive materials, visiting eight facilities including the central radioactive waste processing plant. The country has also endorsed the Net Zero Nuclear goal of tripling global nuclear capacity, signed at COP29.
On the practical side, Kenya is preparing its first research reactor, intended for training, research and medical applications. According to local press reports, the project is estimated at 36.7 billion Kenyan shillings, and another IAEA review is examining the supporting infrastructure, from safety to site selection. The agency NuPEA has set up a dedicated reactor department to build the future operating organisation.
If the implementation plan is approved quickly, Kenya will be able to face its next reviews with a waste strategy already in place. That would be a useful requirement for attracting technology partners and financiers when the country has to decide whether and how to move from a research reactor to its first nuclear power plant.
