Kenya hailed for efforts on Universal healthcare
A patient is treated at the Coast Provincial General Hospital. Photo/FILE
Kenya is among 22 developing countries who have improved efforts to achieve Universal Health Care (UHC) for its citizens, a new World Bank report says.
The report said that Kenya was among three African countries which “have significantly expanded access to healthcare in the last decade.”
Key World Bank criteria in the report included expanding coverage to the poorest and most excluded populations.
While approaches to UHC vary, four-fifths or more of the countries share common objectives in their health goals including an explicitly defined benefits package, expansion of coverage financed by general taxation and “reform of public provision of health services backed by strong political support,” the report said.
“Lessons across the studies point to the need to ensure that the implementation of UHC is equitable, efficient, and sustainable—which requires the use of many instruments that strengthen the accountability of all parties in the health sector,” the report added.
The report stresses that achieving universal health coverage “is a path specific to each country, and no single system or model exists to achieve it.”
However, the World Bank says it will continue to support countries’ efforts to achieve universal health coverage, with the aim of providing quality, affordable healthcare to everyone, ultimately improving health outcomes and reducing financial risks associated with ill health.
“These case studies are an invaluable resource for countries that aspire to achieve universal health coverage in ways that are fiscally sustainable and that enhance both equity and efficiency—toward the goals of ending poverty and boosting shared prosperity,” said Nicole Klingen, Acting Director for Health, Nutrition, and Population at the World Bank.
“Whatever path countries choose, universal health coverage is key to prevent people from falling into poverty due to illness, and to give everyone the opportunity to live healthier, more productive lives—regardless of ability to pay.”
