IAEA: Kenya working to improve radiation protection of workers

An IAEA team has given a positive assessment of Kenya’s efforts to improve radiation protection processes, recommending further measures to guarantee the safety of workers in the nuclear sector. Jizeng Ma, Head of the IAEA Occupational Radiation Protection Unit and mission team coordinator, praised Kenya’s “ongoing commitment to strengthening nuclear and radiation protection, fostering a safer work environment for those requiring radiation monitoring and safety measures.” The IAEA mission took place in March and evaluated the regulatory and practical implementation of protection arrangements in the African country. It was conducted at the request of the Kenyan government and comprised eight international experts from different countries, including Morocco and Senegal. The experts met with Kenya Nuclear Regulatory (KNRA) representatives in Nairobi and visited hospitals, laboratories, and industrial facilities, including a nuclear medicine department. Joseph Amoako, Associate Professor of Health Physics at the School of Nuclear and Allied Sciences-University of Ghana and mission team leader, said the visits highlighted how radiation protection measures are implemented by Kenyan authorities across multiple sectors, underlining the country’s robust management practices and valuable components of its radiation protection system. At the end of the mission, the IAEA team acknowledged progress in enhancing occupational radiation protection and provided several recommendations for improvement, including the creation of a National Dose Registry for the individual monitoring of workers and the training and appointing of more radiation protection officers at nuclear facilities.
Kenya has been an IAEA member since 1965. In 2019, it established the KNRA to strengthen the national regulatory framework for nuclear security and radiation safety. Cooperation with the IAEA has resulted in the development of a research reactor programme and advancement in its infrastructure for planned nuclear power.