Naivasha Referral Hospital has received an environmentally friendly incinerator, truck and other hospital waste-handling equipment worth Sh. 30million to help in management of medical waste at the hospital and its environs.
Handing over the equipment to the hospital, Environment and Forestry Principal Secretary (PS) Dr. Chris Kiptoo said the donation was part of a five- year programme in partnership with United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) under Global Environmental Facility (GEF) which is being implemented in four counties in the country on pilot basis before being rolled out countrywide.
The programme is intended to deal with what Dr. Kiptoo called, “Unintended Persistent Organic Pollutants (UPOP)” which include medical waste.
The PS said his Ministry received Sh. 400million for this project which is being implemented in the counties of Nakuru, Nairobi, Mombasa and Kisumu, where the Naivasha equipment have cost the Government Sh. 26million plus other small equipment and other overheads bringing the total cost to Sh. 30million.
Dr. Kiptoo said Kenya is committed to having a safe environment for its people and to this end, she has ratified various documents on environment including the United Nation Convention on Environment and the Paris Agreement among others.
He revealed that the world today is facing serious challenges of Climate Change, Western Pollution and Biodiversity loss, adding that the Government has identified Agriculture, Energy, Transport, Manufacturing, land use and bio-diversity as the areas in which she (Kenya) intends to deal with climate change.
“To this end, this country requires Sh.1.88 trillion to mitigate the effects of climate change and a further Sh.4.4trillion for adaptation to the climate change in the next 10years,” Kiptoo revealed. He called on other partners to come on board and help the country mitigate and adapt to climate change.
The UNDP Deputy Country Representative Ms. Mandisa Mashologu said the Unintended Persistent Organic Pollutants (UPOP) programme was among eight environmental programmes being implemented in the country and there are plans to expand this UPOP programme to the rest of the country in future.
Nakuru County Deputy Governor Dr. Eric Korir thanked the Government and the partners for the donation saying the previous incinerator the hospital was using was hurting the environment and the residents of the area had voiced concerns which forced the hospital to stop using it.
“The truck on its part is professionally modified to carry medical waste from other faculties to this incinerator which will be serving Naivasha and its environs,” he said and urged the hospital management to make good use of the equipment so that it can give them long service.
By Mabel Keya –Shikuku
