MKU has won over KES 1.19 billion in competitive external research grants between 2018 and 2026 – a sustained achievement across 7 consecutive years that reflects the University’s growing attractiveness as a research partner to national and international funders.
| Year | Notable Projects | Key Funders |
| 2018–2019 | Natural medicinal products, Breast cancer genomics, Antibiotic resistance, Science communication | JSPS, DAAD, KEMRI, NRF |
| 2020 | ACCESS Programme (DAAD/BMZ), FLAIR Novel STI Diagnostics, Malaria vaccine antigens | DAAD/BMZ, Royal Society, MRC |
| 2021 | COVID-19 lateral flow test, mRNA COVID-19, Erasmus+ forest restoration | JSPS, EU Erasmus+, Wellcome Trust |
| 2022 | Neisseria gonorrhoea genomics, Cambridge ALBORADA fund, JKUAT-MKU-NRF | Cambridge Africa, NRF |
| 2023 | Malaria vector control, Kenya-Japan collaboration, Digital youth depression intervention | JSPS, KEMRI, DAAD |
| 2024 | ACCESS 2.0 (€4.5M consortium), Aifya AI newborn care, World Bank SKIES, Pre-eclampsia trials | DAAD/BMZ, World Bank, Wellcome, EU |
| 2025 | Dose Finding Pre-Eclampsia Trial, Glycomics pre-eclampsia, Erasmus Exchange | Wellcome Trust, JSPS, EU Erasmus+ |
| TOTAL | 7 years of consecutive competitive external funding success | |