Africa-Press – Kenya. The Ministry of Health has pledged to advance conditional grants to counties to support the maintenance of Community Health Volunteers. Kenya has more than 9,000 CHVs working across 47 counties. CHVs form a key part of the health workforce, linking communities with the health system.
Their vital role in the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic demonstrates their agility to respond to shocks and their shifting and evolving demands. The grants amounting to Sh2.7 billion will be released in the next three years to support 100,000 CHVs who play a critical role in promotive and preventive health.
This was arrived at during the governors’ Summit held in Naivasha over the weekend. “The service and training of the CHVs shall be standardised through an intergovernmental process,” a communique released after the meeting said.
Despite playing a vital role in reaching Kenyans at the lowest levels with essential health services, CHVs work voluntarily in the spirit of the community health services motto “our health our responsibility”.
This comes after a similar meeting held between the Council of Governors and the Ministry of Health in December during which it was agreed that the two would put in place resources towards CHVs’ compensation package.
The CHVs are tasked with making home visits to deliver health promotion messages and establish protocols for Community-Based Maternal and Newborn Health among others. They are supervised by Community Health Extension Workers and operate within Community Health Units encompassing about 100 households.
However, this has been surpassed to more than 200 households due to the vastness of some parts of the country and high attrition due to the lack of support and motivation from the formal health system.
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