National Dialogue on Health Financing

By ; Maureen Murengeka

Kenya hosted the National Health Financing Dialogue, being the first East African country and the third in Africa to organize this crucial event.

The dialogue intended to sustain financing in the healthcare sector and design effective implementation strategies.

During the opening of the national high-level dialogue on Universal Health Coverage (UHC), Prime

Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi, on behalf of President Ruto, said that the 32nd African Union

(AU) meeting held by the heads of state in 2019 resolved to increase domestic sources of health

through the Africa Leadership Meeting (ALM).

Mudavadi said, “The government is committed to increasing domestic funding for health by

allocating a significant portion of the national budget to healthcare providers through strengthening

the tax systems to broaden the tax base and ensure that the tax laws are fair and inequitable.

He highlighted that the government is investing in the digitization of government systems which will

promote job transparency, improve efficiency and combat corruption.

“Through this, we can generate the necessary revenue to invest in healthcare infrastructure, procure

essential medicines and equipment, and recruit skilled health care professionals,” the Prime Cabinet

Secretary stressed.

Mudavadi said that focusing on primary healthcare strategies such as vaccination, health education,

and early disease infection and treatment can reduce the burden of illnesses and, in turn, free up

resources that can be redirected toward strengthening the health systems.

“It has been shown that for every dollar invested in primary care, the return on investment is Sixteen

dollars,” said Mudavadi.

Health Cabinet Secretary Susan Nakhumicha added that, the government’s commitment to placing

the Kenyan healthcare system on a sustainable financing pathway.

She highlighted the significant increase in budgetary allocation to health in recent years, reflecting

the government’s strong dedication to prioritizing healthcare.

“County governments also demonstrated their commitment by steadily increasing health budgets

From 13.5 percent to 28.2 percent between 2013 and 2022,” said Nakhumicha.

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