Ministry of Health

The Ministry of Health Kenya is co-hosting 2030 IN SIGHT LIVE in Nairobi. Three days of learning, collaboration and action to advance eye health. 📍 Nairobi, Kenya 🗓️ 4–6 June 2026 iapb.world/2030_in_sight_… #2030InSight #UniteForImpact @IAPB1

Join us on 22 May 2026 at the KNH Grounds for the commemoration of the International Day to End Obstetric Fistula. Together, let us raise awareness, promote dignity, and strengthen support for women and girls affected by obstetric fistula. #EndFistula

MoH Weekly News | 20 May 2026 🇰🇪 ▶️ Read here: health.go.ke/moh-weekly-news

MoH Daily Newsletter | 20 May 2026 🇰🇪 A quick look at today’s updates #MOHDaily

Kenya loses up to $756 million every year to tobacco-related illness and lost productivity — a heavy cost on our health system, economy, and workforce. Tobacco control is not just a public health priority; it is an economic imperative. Leaders must act now to protect lives, save resources, and secure a healthier, more productive future.. #UnmaskTheAppealKe #WNTD2026

Kenya is strengthening efforts to reduce preventable maternal and newborn deaths through digital health systems, strengthened surveillance mechanisms, and community-led healthcare interventions. Speaking during a high-level side event convened by the Council of Governors on the margins of #WHA79 in Geneva, Health Cabinet Secretary Hon. Aden Duale highlighted the country’s renewed focus on strengthening the Maternal and Perinatal Death Surveillance and Response system through a “No Name, No Blame” approach that promotes accountability, learning, transparency, and continuous health system improvement. The Cabinet Secretary noted that Kenya is transitioning from paper-based reporting to real-time electronic reporting across public health facilities, with clinical reviews now uploaded directly to national dashboards to support faster analysis, monitoring, and timely decision-making. At the grassroots level, Community Health Promoters are using mobile technology to report deaths within 24 hours, ensuring timely reporting from remote communities while helping identify social and economic barriers affecting access to maternal healthcare services. Kenya has also rolled out the Maternal and Newborn Health Rapid Results Initiative focused on strengthening emergency referral systems and ensuring the consistent availability of essential life-saving maternal and newborn health commodities across health facilities. The discussions reaffirmed Kenya’s growing leadership in advancing accountable, technology-driven, and community-centred maternal and newborn healthcare reforms aimed at improving health outcomes and saving lives.

Kenya has intensified efforts to reduce preventable maternal and newborn deaths through strengthened surveillance systems, digital health transformation, and community-led interventions showcased during a high-level side event convened by the Council of Governors on the margins of the ongoing 79th World Health Assembly in Geneva. The session, presided over by Cabinet Secretary for Health Hon. Aden Duale, highlighted the country’s renewed commitment to strengthening the Maternal and Perinatal Death Surveillance and Response system as part of broader reforms aimed at improving accountability and quality of maternal and newborn healthcare services. Speaking during the event, the Cabinet Secretary said Kenya has shifted from viewing maternal and perinatal deaths as statistics to treating every loss of life as a critical indicator of health system performance and accountability. Hon. Duale noted that the country has adopted a “No Name, No Blame” approach aimed at promoting learning, transparency, and system improvement rather than fault-finding during maternal and perinatal death reviews. He explained that detailed case reviews are helping health authorities identify persistent gaps within the healthcare system, including delayed care-seeking, referral challenges, and weaknesses in the quality of treatment offered at health facilities. The Cabinet Secretary further highlighted ongoing digital reforms within the health sector, noting that Kenya is transitioning from paper-based reporting systems to real-time electronic reporting across public health facilities. Under the new system, clinical reviews are uploaded directly to national dashboards to enable faster analysis, real-time monitoring, and timely decision-making by health authorities. At the community level, Community Health Promoters are using mobile technology to report deaths within 24 hours, ensuring that information from remote areas reaches county and national review committees without delay. The Community Health Promoters are also engaging families and communities to better understand the social and economic barriers affecting access to healthcare, with the information helping shape targeted interventions and responsive national policies. To accelerate progress, Kenya has rolled out the Maternal and Newborn Health Rapid Results Initiative focused on improving emergency referral systems and ensuring the consistent availability of essential life-saving maternal and newborn health commodities across facilities. The discussions positioned Kenya as an emerging leader in technology-driven and community-centred maternal and newborn healthcare reforms aimed at reducing preventable deaths and improving health outcomes. Hosted by Council of Governors CEO Ms. Mary Mwiti, the event was attended by Governors H.E. Muthomi Njuki of Tharaka Nithi and H.E. Stephen Sang of Nandi, Medical Services Principal Secretary Dr. Ouma Oluga, SHA CEO Dr. Mercy Mwangangi, alongside senior Ministry of Health officials.

MoH Daily Newsletter | 19 May 2026 🇰🇪 Read more: health.go.ke/moh-weekly-news

Principal Secretary for Medical Services Dr. Ouma Oluga today held high-level talks with WHO Regional Director for Europe Dr. Hans Kluge focused on strengthening global health workforce collaboration, retention strategies, and ethical mobility frameworks for healthcare workers between Africa and Europe. The discussions centered on advancing a Health Workforce Collaboration Framework aimed at addressing growing global workforce shortages, improving retention, promoting social inclusion, and strengthening protections for healthcare workers against violence and burnout. Dr. Oluga highlighted Kenya’s longstanding leadership in health workforce advocacy, drawing from his experience as former IFMSA Vice President for External Affairs, Secretary General of Kenya’s largest doctors’ organization, and Chair of the Health Workers for All Coalition. He further outlined Kenya’s contributions to health workforce policy reforms, including internship policy development, collective bargaining agreements, and leadership of the WHO Wellbeing Index study conducted across Kenya, Nigeria, and Ghana involving over 3,600 health worker interviews. The meeting also explored the proposed Africa Center for Health Workforce Initiatives, an umbrella platform seeking endorsement from WHO and Africa CDC to strengthen health workforce systems across the continent through policy reforms, education and specialization training, migration and mobility management, and healthcare worker wellbeing. Key concerns discussed included ethical recruitment practices, implementation gaps in bilateral labour agreements, increasing migration of health professionals, curriculum harmonization challenges in medical training institutions, and the need for stronger co-investment models to address workforce losses linked to brain drain. Dr. Kluge shared emerging workforce challenges across the WHO European Region, noting ageing healthcare workforces, increasing violence against healthcare workers, and growing concerns around burnout and mental health. The meeting further highlighted opportunities for shared learning, including formalization of community health workers and adoption of Africa’s community health approaches within European health systems. The two leaders also discussed ongoing WHO-led initiatives on healthcare worker mental health and wellbeing, including facility-level interventions aimed at improving workplace support systems, shift organization, and staff welfare. The engagement reaffirmed the importance of stronger Africa-Europe cooperation in building resilient, protected, motivated, and sustainable health workforces capable of supporting universal health coverage and future global health security priorities.

2030 IN SIGHT LIVE brings together global and regional voices at a critical moment for eye health, under the theme “Unite for Impact.” 📍 Nairobi, Kenya 🗓️ 4–6 June 2026 iapb.world/2030_in_sight_… #2030InSight #UniteForImpact @IAPB1

Congratulations Kenya! 🇰🇪 At the World Health Assembly, WHO Director-General @DrTedros presented CS @AdenDuale with the certificate recognizing Kenya's elimination of sleeping sickness. Zero indigenous cases since 2009. #WHA79 #BeatNTDs

Today’s MoH Daily Newsletter | 19 May 2026 🇰🇪

Kenya has called for fairness, urgency, and equal global solidarity in responding to the ongoing Ebola outbreaks in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda during the 79th World Health Assembly in Geneva. Delivering Kenya’s national statement, Health Cabinet Secretary Hon. Aden Duale said the outbreaks present a critical test of the world’s commitment to justice and equity in global health, emphasizing that health emergencies affecting African countries must receive the same urgency, financing, scientific attention, and coordinated international support often seen in crises elsewhere globally. While aligning Kenya’s position with the African regional statement presented by Zimbabwe on behalf of the WHO African Region, the Cabinet Secretary stressed that equity must remain the foundation of global health governance and emergency response systems. Hon. Duale also reaffirmed Kenya’s commitment to the ongoing negotiations on the Pathogen Access and Benefit-Sharing (PABS) Annex, noting that countries sharing biological samples and outbreak data must be guaranteed fair access to vaccines, therapeutics, and other resulting benefits. He observed that the current Ebola outbreaks continue to expose longstanding global inequities that the framework seeks to address. The Cabinet Secretary further outlined Kenya’s vision for a stronger and more resilient global health architecture anchored on equity, self-reliance, sustainable financing, local manufacturing, and strengthened multilateral cooperation. He called for a transition from dependency towards sustainable regional pharmaceutical manufacturing through technology transfer, strategic partnerships, and targeted investments. Hon. Duale also advocated for financing frameworks that support domestic resource mobilisation and long-term health system resilience while emphasizing the need to strengthen multilateral institutions such as the World Health Organization and Africa CDC to enhance legitimacy, trust, and coordinated global health action. Kenya, he affirmed, remains committed to constructive engagement in shaping an equitable, responsive, and resilient global health system prepared for future public health challenges. The Cabinet Secretary was accompanied by Kenya’s Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the United Nations in Geneva H.E. Dr. Fancy Too, Director-General for Health Dr. Patrick Amoth, Digital Health Agency CEO Eng. Anthony Lenaiyara, and Director of Family Health Dr. Bashir Issak.

Kenya has reduced TB incidence by 45% and TB-related deaths by 58% since 2015 through expanded diagnostics, improved treatment access and integrated TB-HIV programmes. Mary Muthoni, Public Health PS

Convened by Ghanian President, H.E John Mahama, I graced a high-level side event on the 'Accra Reset' initiative, a timely call for country-led health delivery. The forum themed, 'The Geneva Clarion Call: Rethinking Power and Financing for Global Health Delivery,' brought together African leaders to push for structural reforms in how global health priorities are set and financed. In my remarks, I noted that the COVID-19 pandemic exposed deep inequities, leaving many countries reliant on systems that were neither fair nor responsive. The lesson is clear: the era of passive recipient states must end. Kenya's vision rests on three pillars. First, sovereign leadership; countries must define and drive their own health priorities, as reflected in our Universal Health Coverage (UHC) reforms. Second, financing reform; shifting from fragmented, donor-driven models to flexible, predictable funding that prioritizes primary healthcare and genuine partnership. Third, inclusive governance; ensuring Africa has a stronger voice in global health decision-making. Africa is ready to lead, as seen in progress in vaccine manufacturing, genomic surveillance and digital health innovation. I reaffirmed Kenya's commitment to regional cooperation through institutions such as the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention. I was joined by Medical Services PS Dr. Ouma Oluga, SHA CEO Dr. Mercy Mwangangi and a host of Ministers including H.E Budi Sadikin (Indonesia), H.E Alexandre Padiha (Brazil), Kwabena Akandoh (Ghana), Dr. Mohammed Janabi Regional Director WHO AFRO Global Fund Executive Director, Peter Sands, Dr. Saniya Nishtar, CEO GAVI the Vaccine Alliance among others.

Kenya has identified strengthening the health workforce, expanding digital interoperability, enhancing disease surveillance, advancing climate-resilient health systems, and promoting local manufacturing as priority areas requiring demand-driven innovation partnerships to accelerate Universal Health Coverage. Speaking during the “Reverse Pitch” session on the margins of the World Health Assembly in Geneva, Principal Secretary for Public Health and Professional Standards Mary Muthoni emphasized the need for affordable, scalable, interoperable, and context-driven innovations that respond to frontline healthcare needs. The PS further called for stronger collaboration among governments, innovators, investors, academic institutions, and development partners to support sustainable health innovations and drive the transition from fragmented pilot initiatives to long-term health systems transformation.

Kenya is strengthening community health services and Primary Health Care as a cornerstone of Universal Health Coverage through sustained investments in professional Community Health Promoters, digital health systems, and preventive healthcare. Speaking during a high-level session on financing and institutionalising professional Community Health Workers on the sidelines of #WHA79 in Geneva, Principal Secretary for Public Health and Professional Standards Mary Muthoni said the Government is advancing fully institutionalised, paid, equipped, skilled, and digitalised community health services under the Taifa Care reforms. She noted that more than 107,000 Community Health Promoters are currently being supported with monthly stipends, digital devices, and medical kits to enhance disease prevention, early detection, referrals, and delivery of household-level healthcare services across the country. The PS also called for stronger partnerships and sustainable investments to strengthen the global community health agenda.

MoH Daily Newsletter | 18 May 2026 🇰🇪 Access the edition here: health.go.ke/node/2367

Just because nicotine advertising feels familiar and everywhere online doesn’t mean it’s harmless. In Kenya, social media has quietly turned nicotine use into a normal part of youth culture,4 in 10 adolescents now regularly encounter these products on their screens. The real danger isn't just the product itself, but the illusion that everyone is using it. Call to Action: Don’t scroll past manipulation. When you spot nicotine content disguised as entertainment or lifestyle content, call it out. Break the silence, challenge the algorithm, and help unmask the tactics behind the trend. Join the conversation with #UnmaskTheAppealKe