Health Cabinet Secretary Debra Barasa at JW Marriott Hotel in Nairobi. [Edward Kiplimo, Standard]
More than 350,000 Kenyans have registered for the Social Health Authority (SHA) in the past five days, bringing total registrations to 19,340,978, up from 18,988,530, the Health Ministry has announced.
Of those registered, over one million have accessed primary healthcare services since October 2024.
However, Turkana, West Pokot, and Samburu Counties continue to lag behind in SHA registration.
The ministry also noted low registration rates over weekends.
“Kenya continues to make strides in strengthening public health systems and emergency preparedness. We remain vigilant and proactive in safeguarding the health of all Kenyans,” the ministry said.
To boost enrollment, the government plans to intensify community outreach beyond health service points and continue capacity-building efforts for healthcare facilities transitioning from manual to digital systems.
Meanwhile, the ministry has attributed SHA’s challenges to low contributions. Appearing before the National Assembly’s Health Committee, Principal Secretary Harry Kimtai said only four million of the 18 million registered Kenyans are making contributions.
This leaves about 14 million people who are not paying the required 2.75 percent monthly contribution Kimtai said.
The PS noted that the biggest challenge is in the informal sector, which accounts for about 80 percent of the population. Those in this sector are expected to remit payments through means testing, but compliance remains low.
