The National Research Fund (NRF) has invited applications for the Postgraduate Research Grant for the 2025/2026 financial year, as part of its efforts to strengthen science, technology, and innovation in the country.
In a notice issued on Tuesday, January 27, the Fund invited postgraduate students enrolled in both public and private universities to apply for the competitive funding opportunity. The grants target students pursuing Master’s and doctoral degrees and are designed to support high-quality research that contributes to innovation, evidence-based policymaking, and inclusive national development.
The NRF, a statutory body established under the Science, Technology, and Innovation Act of 2013, stated that the funding will support only the research component of postgraduate programmes. Priority will be given to projects aligned with national development goals and the Government’s Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda (BETA).
Under the funding framework, successful doctoral research projects will receive up to Ksh2 million over a period not exceeding three years. Master’s research projects, on the other hand, will receive funding of up to Ksh500,000 for a maximum duration of one year.
The Fund emphasised that the grants are strictly open to Kenyan citizens who are registered in recognised universities within the country. Applicants have been urged to carefully review the detailed guidelines available on the NRF website before submitting their proposals.
All applications must be submitted online through the NRF Grants Management System via grantsportal.nrf.go.ke. The Fund noted that no manual submissions will be accepted.
The deadline for submission of research proposals is March 6, 2026, at 11:59pm. NRF further indicated that only successful applicants will be contacted after the evaluation process is complete.
For further inquiries, applicants have been advised to contact the National Research Fund headquarters at NACOSTI Plaza, Upper Kabete, Nairobi.