The Danish government has donated Sh 940 million to support primary healthcare across the 47 counties this financial year.
The support targets level three facilities countrywide to help county governments enhance access to quality healthcare.
The Danish Ambassador to Kenya, Mette Knudsen said the support will go a long way in assisting to mitigate the various challenges facing the sector as the government plans to roll out Universal Health Coverage (UHC).
Knudsen said the initiative targets level three facilities which include dispensaries and health centers since they are critical in offering family health care.
Speaking in Kisumu where he toured Nyalenda Health Center, which is one of the facilities sponsored by the Danish government, the envoy decried the shortage of health workers at level five facilities which she said greatly hampered service delivery.
She said most of the facilities despite being within the reach of the communities were laying idle, while calling for concerted efforts to address the existing challenges.
She urged the national and county governments to address the human resource issue at the facilities to ensure that millions of Kenyans they reach receive quality services.
“We have very beautiful facilities which must be kept busy to serve the community,” said the ambassador.
She called for linkages between health facilities (public and private) and the insurance sector to help address bottlenecks in health provision.
The envoy said the Danish government will continue to support the health sector in the country even after the current program ends in 2021.
Knudsen disclosed that consultations were ongoing for phase two of the program with possibilities of increasing the support to Sh15 billion from 2021-2025.
By Chris Mahandara and Prudence Andeka
