en.Wedoany.com Reported - Kenya's Parliament has approved the establishment of the National Cyber Security Agency (NCSA) to centralize the security protection of the country's critical digital infrastructure and coordinate responses to growing cyber threats.

The agency is established under the National Cyber Security Agency Order, 2026, issued by President William Ruto pursuant to the State Corporations Act.

The NCSA will be responsible for protecting critical digital infrastructure, coordinating cybersecurity incident responses, overseeing the national cybersecurity strategy, and auditing the resilience of key government and private sector systems. The establishment of the agency comes as Kenya's reliance on mobile payments, digital financial services, e-government platforms, and online commerce continues to deepen, thereby increasing the risks of cybercrime, ransomware attacks, data breaches, and other digital threats.

Kenya's Ministry of Interior said in a statement on Monday that this approval is a key measure to strengthen the country's ability to prevent, detect, and respond to cyber threats. The NCSA will operate as an autonomous regulatory and technical agency responsible for coordinating national cybersecurity initiatives and protecting the critical information infrastructure that underpins government services, economic activities, and national security.

The Ministry of Interior stated that as government agencies, businesses, and citizens increasingly rely on digital technologies, strengthening cybersecurity has become a national priority. The agency will work closely with government bodies, security agencies, regulators, industry players, academia, development partners, and international cybersecurity networks.

The NCSA's responsibilities include overseeing the national cybersecurity strategy, auditing critical infrastructure, managing the National Cybersecurity Operations Centre, supporting sectoral operations centres, and coordinating cybersecurity incident responses. The agency will also conduct technical assessments of digital networks, identify emerging vulnerabilities, and issue technical recommendations to enhance national cybersecurity management.

Additionally, the NCSA will establish a Cyber Security Centre of Excellence to promote research, innovation, skills development, and the development of localized cybersecurity solutions. The government stated that this will help address the country's cybersecurity skills gap through professional certifications, specialized training, and capacity-building programs.

Previously, cybersecurity responsibilities in Kenya were dispersed across multiple agencies, including the National Kenya Computer Incident Response Team Coordination Centre under the Communications Authority of Kenya, law enforcement agencies, sector regulators, and government information communication technology bodies. The government believes that an independent agency can provide stronger national-level coordination, more effective oversight of critical information infrastructure, and a more unified response to increasingly sophisticated cyber threats. The government added that a secure and reliable digital environment is essential for protecting public institutions, safeguarding citizen data, supporting business continuity, attracting investment, and advancing Kenya's broader digital transformation agenda.

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