Sakaja Sorts Out Ksh 353M Debt in 5 Months

Nairobi governor Johnson Sakaja at his office on Tuesday, January 10, 2023.
Nairobi governor Johnson Sakaja at his office on Tuesday, January 10, 2023.
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Johnson Sakaja

Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja delivered his manifesto by sorting out the long-term debt with Kenya Medical Supplies Authority(KEMSA).

On Sunday, February 12, the county boss announced that Nairobi residents would no longer experience drugs shortage in hospitals as his team had began processing supplies to various facilities.

He also assured his people that he was also working on delivering Integrated Health Management Information Systems (IHMIS).

"Preparing medical supplies for our facilities. Finally sorted our historical debt with KEMSA and firmed up an arrangement to ensure constant supply to all our facilities.

A photo of drugs ready for supply to Nairobi county facilities
A photo of drugs ready for supply to Nairobi county facilities
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Sakaja Arthur Johnson

"You will no longer complain of a drug shortage or even be referred to a chemist to purchase drugs just because the facilities are experiencing a shortage," he announced.

In a clip seen by Kenyans.co.ke, tonnes of drugs packed in cartons were seen ready for supply to different hospitals in the county.

After he was sworn into office on August 25, 2022, Sakaja outlined that his administration would prioritise providing quality healthcare through implementing an IHIMS and health financing such as settling KEMSA debt to facilitate the supply of medicine.

In 2022, KEMSA announced that Nairobi topped the debt list with Ksh353 million debt. Nairobi Metropolitan Services(NMS) however cleared Ksh195 million.

Kemsa and the county government had been embroiled in a tussle over the debt since 2017.

Pending bills owed to KEMSA by county governments for supplies had dropped from Ksh3.9 billion to Ksh2.7 billion.

The drop by Ksh1.2 billion came after nine counties (Kilifi, Nakuru, Laikipia, Nyeri, Meru, West Pokot, Turkana, Kisii and Makueni) were given a clean bill of health after clearing their outstanding bills.

Kemsa chief executive officer Terry Ramadhani stated that the debt by counties had been outstanding for a long time.

Kemsa Offices
Kemsa Offices
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