Government Expands Access to Primary Healthcare

The Kenyan government is making strong moves to expand access to primary healthcare (PHC) as a cornerstone of its Universal Health Coverage (UHC) agenda. Under its Taifa Care reforms, the Ministry of Health is now fully funding primary healthcare services at public dispensaries and health centers (levels 2–4), ensuring that Kenyans can access essential health services without out‑of‑pocket costs.
To support this expansion, KES 13 billion has been allocated specifically for the Primary Healthcare Fund, which will go directly into grassroots facilities to boost service delivery, infrastructure, and staffing. The government is also investing heavily in human resources: nearly 108,000 Community Health Promoters (CHPs) have been deployed nationwide to take healthcare to the community level, strengthening preventive and promotive care.
In a bid to optimize PHC delivery, the Ministry has established Primary Care Networks (PCNs) across all 47 counties. These networks link community health units, health centers, and county hospitals to ensure seamless patient referrals, shared resources, and coordinated care. Digital transformation is also helping: 8.8 million households have now been registered in the electronic Community Health Information System (e-CHIS), making it easier to track and manage community-level health data.
Financing reforms are another key part of the expansion. All SHA (Social Health Authority) payments for PHC are now channeled into a dedicated PHC Fund, and a new claims-tracking dashboard allows real-time monitoring of payments to facilities. By aligning financing, service delivery, and community health, the government hopes to shift the health system toward prevention-first care, reducing the pressure on hospitals and improving health outcomes for ordinary Kenyans.