On Friday 22, 2019, the Ministry of Health’s National Tuberculosis, Leprosy and Lung Disease Program launched the Kenya National Strategic Plan (NSP) for Tuberculosis, Leprosy and Lung Health 2019-2023 during the World Tuberculosis Day commemoration held at Thika Stadium, Kiambu County.
Speaking during the event, Cabinet Secretary for Health, Sicily Kariuki, emphasised the importance of the strategy that will ensure a patient-centred approach in closing the gaps along the patient pathway to quality care.
“This strategy will ensure a patient-centred approach to TB prevention, diagnosis, treatment and care, which calls for the elimination of fees associated with diagnostic testing for TB, including chest radiography services,” CS Kariuki said.
She added that the strategy was in line with His Excellency President Uhuru Kenyatta’s commitment to diagnose and cure at least 597,000 people with TB by 2023 including; 55,000 children, 542,000 adults and 4,500 people with multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) in addition to providing TB preventive therapy to at least 900,000 Kenyans at risk.
CS Kariuki called for the continued support from partners and stakeholders so as to end TB by the year 2030.
Dr Rudi Eggers, WHO Country Representative in Kenya, lauded the launch of the strategy saying that it recognises the importance of strong partnerships and commitment at the national and county levels to end TB by: prioritising the use of proven methods like GeneXpert and newly available TB medicines to diagnose and successfully treat all types of TB; prioritising operational research needed to inform policies and help improve delivery of TB services and positioning TB control into emerging Universal Health Coverage in Kenya.
Dr Eggers advised that in order to end the TB epidemic by 2030, “…we must ensure universal access to rapid molecular tests recommended by WHO as first-line tests for the diagnosis of all suspected cases of tuberculosis. We must also adopt the new drugs and combination therapies recommended by WHO to treat drug-resistant tuberculosis.”
Noting that a considerable portion of the strategy remains unfunded with external funding declining, Dr Eggers called on the national and county governments to invest more resources in TB control in order to realise the aspirations of the new strategy.
The U.S. government’s contributions to the NSP was through the USAID-funded Kenya Tuberculosis Accelerated Response and Care (TB ARC II) Activity, implemented by Centre for Health Solutions – Kenya (CHS), which provided funding and technical support to ensure a strong strategy that aligns with global goals.
Representing the U.S. government at the launch, Dr Herman Weyenga of CDC Kenya called on county governments to take up the national strategic plan and adapt it to their local contexts so that it is most effective for their populations.
He also added, “As partners, we managed to find about 20,000 TB patients that would not have been found if we hadn’t increased our efforts together.”
The strategy provides a framework for a multi-sector partnership for Kenya to overcome TB and leprosy as public health and social challenges. It outlines the goal, objectives, strategic interventions and activities over a five-year period considered within the Kenyan health sector’s vision and mission for the period 2014-2030. National and county governments, civil societies, the private sector, development partners and other stakeholders have collaborated in its development.
The CS also launched ‘The Maliza (End) TB County Initiative’ which is aimed at mobilising domestic efforts to support TB prevention, treatment and care. The initiative will be piloted in Kiambu County and it is envisaged that by the year 2025 that all the counties in Kenya will have successfully implemented the initiative.
Other key activities of the day included an on-site medical camp with TB screening to trace missing cases and drama presentations by high school students to create TB awareness.
This year’s global theme for World TB Day was ‘It’s Time’ and Kenya’s theme was ‘It Is Time for a TB Free Kenya’.
