The Principal Secretary for Medical Services, Dr Ouma Oluga, has called for stronger accountability, improved coordination and accelerated implementation of the Healthcare IT Digitisation Programme to ensure investments in digital health translate into improved healthcare services for Kenyans.
Dr Oluga made the remarks while chairing a meeting of the Healthcare IT Digitisation Programme Steering Committee at Afya House. The meeting brought together representatives from the Safaricom Consortium, the Digital Health Authority (DHA), the Social Health Authority (SHA), the Kenya Medical Supplies Authority (KEMSA), and other implementing agencies involved in the Universal Health Coverage (UHC) Digital Transformation Programme.
The session reviewed progress made so far, assessed key milestones, and identified priority areas aimed at strengthening oversight, enhancing collaboration, and ensuring the timely delivery of the programme.
Priorities for Healthcare IT Digitisation Programme
To guide the next phase of implementation, Dr Oluga outlined four key priorities. These include strengthening accountability among subcontractors to ensure they deliver on their commitments, improving the tracking and visibility of project investments to promote transparency and prudent use of public resources, accelerating the rollout of infrastructure, ICT equipment and digital systems while guaranteeing their stability and reliability, and ensuring investments deliver tangible benefits to healthcare facilities, health workers and patients.
The Principal Secretary emphasised the need for closer collaboration among technical teams, project managers and implementing agencies to sustain momentum and address implementation challenges.
He reaffirmed the Ministry of Health’s commitment to working closely with all partners to maximise the value of public investments and ensure the programme achieves its intended goals.
The Healthcare IT Digitisation Programme is a key pillar of the government’s Taifa Care agenda, leveraging technology to strengthen health service delivery, improve efficiency across the healthcare system, and advance the realisation of Universal Health Coverage.
