By Samwel Doe Ouma @samweldoe
Kenya has made significant strides in the fight against TB, HIV & Malaria in the past 20 years through the support of Global Fund.
According to Susan Mochache, Principal Secretary of Health and chair Kenya coordinating mechanism for the Global Fund, the support from Global Fund to procure TB drugs, diagnostic equipment and technology has contributed to a treatment success rate of 85 per cent and a decline in annual TB incidence.
“The support from Global Fund to procure TB drugs, diagnostic equipment and technology has contributed to a treatment success rate of 85 per cent and a decline in annual TB incidence,” she said.
Mochache was addressing both state and non- state actors at the 7th Global Fund replenishment round-table meeting that brought together civil society organizations, healthcare practitioners and the diplomatic community.
She added that the Global fund malaria program support has also contributed to the overall reduction of the malaria burden with the national level prevalence declining from 8.2 per cent in 2015 to 5.6 per cent in 2020.
“In this regard, I am happy to note that Global Fund has supported the procurement and distribution of over 8.5 million doses of first-line anti-malaria drugs as well as 25 million mosquito nets,” PS Mochache said.
She further explained that between 2013 and 2021, the HIV program yielded a 67 per cent decline in annual Aids-related deaths and increase of 83 per cent in the number of people living with HIV that are on life-saving antiretroviral treatment, from 0.66 million people in 2013 to 1.2 million people in 2021.
In 2019, at the Sixth Replenishment in France, the government of Kenya pledged Sh719.4 million.
Data with the government shows that to date, Global Fund has signed in favors of Kenya, grants amounting to over Sh215.6 billion, while the country has contributed an estimated Sh838.4 million to the kitty in the last two decades.
“These grants have supplemented the government’s efforts to address the three diseases of global concern, while at the same time strengthening our health service delivery, infrastructure, and community systems,” Muiruri who was representing Treasury CS Ukur Yatani noted.
He revealed that already, Kenya has honoured three-quarters of its 2019 pledge in France during the sixth replenishment conference, disbursing Sh479.1 million out of the Sh718.6 million.
