Rural Clinics Expand Services for Mothers and Children

the rural community of Emurua Dikirr in Narok County saw a major boost to its maternal and child health services when work began on a new children’s unit, paediatric wing, and outpatient facility at the local Emurua Dikirr Level 4 Hospital.The expansion aims to reduce the long, difficult journeys expectant mothers and families previously had to make to the distant county referral hospital — a barrier that often discouraged timely care or led to delays in childbirth or treatment.The new facility is designed to bring critical services closer to home: once complete, mothers in labour will have access to safer, local delivery services; newborns and children will have dedicated pediatric care nearby; and outpatient services will cover a broad range of maternal-child health needs. For many families in remote or underserved wards, this will mark a dramatic improvement — lowering transport costs, shortening waiting times, and giving newborns and mothers a better shot at receiving timely, quality care. In a parallel development, on 19 November 2025, a new plan aimed at improving maternal and child health across the country was launched by Kenya PaediatricResearch Consortium (KEPRECON): a five-year Strategic Plan (2025–2030) and a long-term 25-year Master Plan (2025–2050). These blueprints seek to translate past commitments into concrete action — by strengthening health systems, improving access to care (especially for mothers and children), addressing personnel shortages, and pushing for equitable health outcomes even in rural and remote areas.
Together, these initiatives reflect a growing effort in Kenya to close the gap in maternal and child health between urban centers and rural communities. By investing in infrastructure — like the new facility at Emurua Dikirr — and planning strategically at the national level through KEPRECON’s roadmap, there is hope for safer pregnancies, healthier births, and better long-term outcomes for children across underserved regions. If you like — I can pull up 3 or 4 more recent examples from across Kenya, showing where rural clinics have expanded or improved maternal/child services, to give a broader view.