About CETRAD

Kenyan research institution working Laikipia's drylands since 1976

To study Kenya's arid and semi-arid lands, enhance the expertise of ASAL planners, and empower local communities through knowledge - so they may lead their own development.

Who We Are

For half a century, the Centre for Transformative Research and Development (CETRAD) has worked in Kenya's drylands and across East Africa, turning grounded knowledge into training, action, and practical responses with communities, counties, and partners.

As an independent Trust bringing together the University of Nairobi, the University of Bern, and the Ministry of Water, Sanitation and Irrigation, CETRAD combines research depth with direct connection to policy-making, producing knowledge that is both scientifically robust and closely tied to the realities where it is meant to make a difference.

Vision

A region where communities in arid and semi-arid lands thrive through sustainable management of their natural resources, informed by science and empowered by knowledge.

Mission

To assess the potential of arid and semi-arid lands, empower communities to manage their resources sustainably, and integrate sectoral actors for coordinated development - producing baseline studies, spatial analyses, trained cohorts, and plans that reach the people who need them.

What We Do

Research

Applied and interdisciplinary research on ASAL systems

CETRAD produces applied, interdisciplinary research on ASAL systems, designed to be usable by practitioners and decision-makers.

Training

Training the next generation of ASAL researchers and practitioners

CETRAD trains the next generation of ASAL researchers and practitioners through graduate supervision, short courses, and field programmes.

Knowledge Infrastructure

Building the open knowledge infrastructure dryland regions need

CETRAD is building open tools and platforms for ASAL knowledge - an early-stage geoportal and e-learning platform designed to serve research, practice, and policy.

Institutional Anchor

Institutional anchor for the ASAL region

CETRAD is a continuously present, independent, institutionally stable actor in the ASAL region, governed by a tripartite board bringing together the University of Bern, the University of Nairobi, and the Ministry of Water and Irrigation. The Trust transition signals continuity, not rupture.

"We live here. 50 years of continuous presence in Laikipia has built deep community trust, long-term datasets, and institutional memory that shape everything we do."

Our History

1976

Laikipia Research Programme begins - first hydromet stations installed in the Ewaso Ng'iro basin

2002

CETRAD formally established as a Kenyan research institution based in Nanyuki, with international academic partnerships

2016

Partnership with Wyss Academy for Nature launched - wildlife corridors and wetland restoration

2026

Transition to Trust structure: a new phase of institutional independence, operational continuity, and long-term anchoring in Kenya.

Governance

Kenyan leadership, global reach

CETRAD is governed through a tripartite structure embedding three institutional spheres: policy, through the Ministry of Water, Sanitation and Irrigation; research, through the University of Nairobi; and international academic backing, through the Centre for Development and Environment (CDE) at the University of Bern. This structure ensures that CETRAD's work is simultaneously grounded in Kenyan policy, connected to national research, and held to international scientific standards.

CETRAD independently sets its research priorities, manages its operations from Nanyuki, and builds partnerships with funders and institutions worldwide.

Policy & Governance

Ministry of Water, Sanitation & Irrigation

Government of Kenya

Research & Academic

University of Nairobi

Kenya

Academic Partner

Centre for Development and Environment

University of Bern, Switzerland

Our Values