Embu County tops in Caesarean births in Kenya

Embu County recorded Kenya’s highest Caesarean section rate, with 43 percent of births delivered by surgery. The Kenya National Bureau of Statistics’ 2025/26 healthcare survey puts the rate at more than double the national average of 20.3 percent and nearly three times the World Health Organization’s recommended upper limit of 15 percent. The report describes the rate as an indication of the high cost of childbirth in the county.