Nairobi,
Thursday, 14 March, 2024
McCreadie Andias,
The government through the Ministry of Health has today unveiled the Resilient and Empowered African Community Health (REACH) program, a kity aimed at empowering the works of Community Health workers in Marginalized areas.
The programme which will see a significant motivation to the community primary Healthcare frontiers was unveiled in collaboration with other key stakeholders including the African Union,African Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, IFRC, Kenya Red Cross and the Prudence Foundation.
Under it’s first inaugural phase. The programme , will train 25,000 CHWs, which is in line with the continental objective of uplifting over 2 million CHWs from across the continent by 2029.
Health Cabinet Secretary, Nakhumicha S. Wafula, who was represented by Dr. Nobert Abuya, highlighted REACH as a “beacon of hope”, aligning with the Government commitment to Universal Health Coverage (UHC) and reinforcing the national health agenda.
Through REACH, the government has signalled its commitment to work with devolved units in achieving UHC while executing the Primary Healthcare Act , and the allocation of funds to support CHWs.
Meanwhile, The government has estimated that nearly 13.5 million Kenyans at the grassroots, have benefitted from the Community Health Promoters (CHP) services, including early detection of diseases and conditions and subsequent referrals made for treatment in serious cases.
Earlier last month, Deputy president Rigathi Gachagua rolled out the release of Sh3 billion to cater for the monthly stipends for the 107,000 Community Health Promoters (CHPs). Gachagua noted that the drive to achieve Universal Health Coverage remains in top gear of the Kenya Kwanza Administration , with notable successes being realised in the implementation of the landmark Community Health Programme- Afya Nyumbani.
