Kiambu County has cleared Sh2.06 million debts with the Kenya Medical Supplies Authority (KEMSA) for medical supplies provided to its hospitals.
Through a letter from KEMSA Chief Operating Officer Dr. Dulacha Waqo, it was announced that Kiambu County ended the 2023/24 financial year debt-free for drugs supplied to its over 120 level 2-5 hospitals.
“In preparation for the end-of-year closing and the upcoming audit by the Office of the Auditor General, we have reviewed our records and noted that as of June 30, 2024, Kiambu County owes KEMSA Nil. We would like to take this opportunity to thank you for maintaining a clear financial standing with us,” read the letter.
KEMSA Board Director Bernard Bett, speaking during a free mosquito net distribution exercise last week, stated that counties owe KEMSA over Sh3 billion in debts and urged them to speed up the clearance of these pending bills.
“We are happy that we are making progress in engaging the counties. Our order fill rate is still at 60 per cent. We are hopeful we will get those debts cleared. By the end of the year we shall be somewhere close to 90 per cent,” Bett said.
He added that they have been reaching out to the Council of Governors and individual counties to ensure that they pay the debts so that our operations can move forward.
Kiambu Governor Paul Kimani Wamatangi said that, in addition to the drug payments, the county entered the 2024/25 financial year without any pending bills for goods and services rendered to the county government.
Kiambu is the only county that transitioned to the 2023–2024 fiscal year without even one outstanding bill from the 2022–2023 fiscal year.
“I directed that departments should procure any goods and services or advertise for projects, regardless of size, only if they have the funds available. We are operating on a cash basis,” Wamatangi said.
By John Kariba
