BY MOURINE SCOVIAN: A highly controversial online video has thrust the legal and ethical boundaries of reproductive health in Kenya into the spotlight, after a woman from Likoni, Mombasa, publicly advertised her commercial surrogacy and egg donation services on social media.

Speaking directly to the camera in a clip that has quickly gone viral, the woman positioned herself as a solution for both local and international clients who are either medically unable to conceive or simply choose not to carry a pregnancy.

Breaking traditional taboos surrounding assisted reproduction, she went as far as openly broadcasting her rate card: a flat fee of Sh 80,000 per donated egg, alongside a monthly retainer of Sh 40,000 to act as a surrogate mother.

Under her proposed terms, the intended parents would also be fully financially responsible for her housing, food, specialized medical care, and routine ultrasound scans throughout the nine-month gestation period.

To reassure prospective clients, the woman emphasized that the entire arrangement is handled under strict professional oversight, claiming that comprehensive legal contracts are drafted and signed by all parties with the assistance of a lawyer before any medical procedure begins.

She assured viewers that immediately following delivery, full parental custody is legally transferred to the clients, and she receives her final compensation.

However, her public pitch has ignited a fierce, polarized debate across Kenyan online spaces, exposing a massive regulatory gray area.

While some netizens praised her for offering a vital lifeline to struggling families and demystifying fertility struggles, many others raised intense concerns regarding the legal, ethical, and medical safety of such transactions.

The viral video arrives at a highly sensitive time for the country’s medical jurisprudence.

Kenya currently lacks a definitive statutory framework governing assisted reproductive technologies (ART), meaning commercial surrogacy agreements operate in a complex legal vacuum where parental rights, commercial exploitation, and the medical vetting of donors remain dangerously unregulated.

By bringing these backroom negotiations into the public digital marketplace, the Likoni woman’s advertisement has amplified urgent calls for parliament to fast-track long-delayed legislation regarding reproductive health and surrogacy rights in Kenya.