Nairobi, KENYA Thursday September 25, 2019 – The Government is committed towards eliminating Mother-to-child transmission of HIV and Syphilis and reduction of maternal and child deaths.
The Principal Secretary (PS) for Health Susan Mochache made the remarks when she officially opened a forum bringing together counties and development partners with the aim of accelerating Universal Health Coverage (UHC) through an integrated national stocktaking exercise of maternal and child health, at the Kenya School of Government in Nairobi on Wednesday.
The PS noted that the Framework for Elimination of Mother to Child Transmission of HIV and Syphilis 2016 – 2021 marked the commitment that every Life Counts.
“The Linda mama initiative and the upcoming rollout of UHC in the whole country is a demonstration of the political commitment from the highest office of this Country,” she said.
She however acknowledged that whereas the country has made strides in reproductive, maternal, neonatal, child and adolescent health services, there is still need for concerted efforts as young people and women remain vulnerable to multiple risks such as acquisition of sexually transmitted infections including HIV, unintended pregnancies and risk of sexual exploitation and abuse.
“This forum is therefore critical, as it will trigger a resilient multisectoral response to Reproductive, Maternal, Neonatal Child and Adolescent Health (RMNCAH) and Elimination of Mother to Child Transmission (EMTCT) as critical markers of UHC in the country,” she said.
She noted that several countries have already been validated for eMTCT of HIV, and called for renewed commitment to the agenda to halt and reverse mother to child HIV transmissions.
“I would particularly want us to target to be the first country in this region to be validated,” she argued.
The meeting themed “Every Woman, Every Child and Every Adolescent Life counts, Tulinde Kizazi” presents an opportunity for stakeholders to reflect and refocus efforts to ensure that indeed every woman, every child and every Adolescent survives and thrives.
Health PS Susan Mochache with representatives from DPHK during the opening of an integrated national stocktaking meeting on maternal and child health