Health project targets underserved Kenyans

A new China-backed health initiative will bring lifesaving maternal and newborn services closer to vulnerable communities in Kenya's northeastern region, with a $4 million investment expected to directly benefit over half a million people and strengthen healthcare systems in Garissa, Wajir and Mandera counties.

The two-year project, launched on Tuesday by the Kenyan government, UNICEF, and the Chinese government through the China International Development Cooperation Agency, or CIDCA, seeks to improve maternal and newborn health outcomes in areas where access to essential health services remains below the national average.

The initiative, known as the Promotion of Health and Well-being of Women and Children in Kenya project, is funded through a $3 million contribution from China's Global Development and South-South Cooperation Fund, with UNICEF providing an additional $1 million in cofinancing. It is expected to reach a further 630,000 people indirectly through stronger health systems and community support mechanisms.

The project comes as Kenya continues to make progress in maternal and child health. According to the Ministry of Health, skilled birth attendance has risen to 89 percent while 80 percent of children are fully immunized. However, maternal mortality remains at 355 deaths per 100,000 live births, while newborn mortality stands at 21 deaths per 1,000 live births.

Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale said the burden of maternal and newborn deaths continues to fall disproportionately on women and children living in remote and underserved areas, particularly in Kenya's arid and semiarid counties.

"The burden of these deaths is not evenly distributed. Women and newborns living in remote, hard-to-reach, and underserved areas continue to face significant barriers in accessing timely and quality care."

The project will focus on strengthening health facility readiness, improving the availability of essential medical equipment and commodities, enhancing infection prevention measures, and upgrading water and sanitation infrastructure in health facilities.

It will also support the training and capacity building of health workers and strengthen community health systems to improve the early identification of pregnancies, referral of mothers and newborns, and utilization of maternal and newborn health services.

"We must ensure that a mother in Mandera has the same opportunity to survive childbirth as a mother in Nairobi," Duale said.

Chinese Ambassador to Kenya Guo Haiyan said the project would be implemented through localized interventions tailored to the needs of the target counties, including support for health facilities and primary healthcare networks.

"We'll dock with actual needs and deliver people-centered outcomes by formulating targeted and localized implementation plans."

Guo said the project will support the training of 600 healthcare providers, including nurses, clinical officers and nutritionists, while also improving water, sanitation and hygiene services in healthcare facilities.

Deputy Director-General of the CIDCA's Department of International Cooperation Guan Zhiyong said the project reflects the longstanding development partnership between China and Kenya, which has expanded across sectors including health, agriculture, education, infrastructure and human resource development over the past six decades.