This archive report was first published on 5 November 2021.
At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, Kenya's healthcare system was on the brink of collapse due to a corruption scandal at the Kenya Medical Supplies Authority (KEMSA). The situation was dire, with media reports and accounts from clients, mostly county and national referral hospitals, painting a picture of a misfiring gun.
President Uhuru Kenyatta was acutely aware of the situation and tasked the Board of Directors to oversee a rapid results programme to transform the Authority. The Board's primary objective was to ensure that KEMSA was able to meet the needs of its clients, particularly in the wake of the pandemic.
However, an independent review by a local and international panel of experts revealed that KEMSA was grossly underperforming and unable to meet the needs of its clients. The review identified deeply-rooted systemic issues, including the integrity of the Authority's procurement, warehousing and distribution, information communication and technology (ICT) systems and procedures.
The Board has since announced the stepping up of the reforms agenda to get KEMSA back on its feet under a consultative model. The envisaged reforms and restructuring will help reconstitute human resource functions to bring about the much-needed coherence and end-to-end visibility of the Authority.
As the review gets underway, the Board has issued general notice letters to all non-core staff members, requiring them to work from home as the necessary consultations progress to an amicable settlement. The core operating teams have been notified, appointed, and mobilised to ensure seamless operations in the intervening period.
The Board is optimistic that the restructuring and reforms will herald the dawn of a new KEMSA – an authority that is structurally aligned to industry-accepted standards for a health commodities and technologies procurement and distribution organisation.
Published on November 5, 2021, by Mary Mwadime, Chairperson, Kenya Medical Supplies Authority.
