logo
Kenya: Cabinet Secretary (CS) Duale Reviews Digital Health Regulations with National Assembly Committee

Kenya: Cabinet Secretary (CS) Duale Reviews Digital Health Regulations with National Assembly Committee

Zawya22-04-2025
Health Cabinet Secretary Hon. Aden Duale today held a consultative session with the National Assembly Committee on Delegated Legislation, chaired by Ainabkoi MP Hon. Samuel Chepkonga, to review the Digital Health (Health Information Management Procedures) Regulations, 2025 at Bunge Towers, Nairobi.
The meeting focused on aligning the updated regulations with previous recommendations made during the prepublication stage, ensuring they effectively support the rollout of Universal Health Coverage (UHC).
Hon. Duale informed the Committee of the operationalization of the USSD code *147# to facilitate the transition of Kenyans from NHIF to the Social Health Authority (SHA) platform.
The discussions also emphasized the importance of robust public awareness campaigns to promote understanding and uptake of SHA services, especially at the grassroots level.
The CS was accompanied by Medical Services Principal Secretary Dr. Ouma Oluga, Director General for Health Dr. Patrick Amoth, Acting CEO of the Digital Health Agency Mr. Anthony Lenaiyara, and other senior Ministry officials.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Ministry of Health, Kenya.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Oman: Digital healthcare booming
Oman: Digital healthcare booming

Zawya

time3 days ago

  • Zawya

Oman: Digital healthcare booming

The global healthcare market is undergoing a massive paradigm shift from the conventional way to digital healthcare, a long-overdue transformation, and the reflections are felt across the region too. In 2024, the market attracted $25.1 billion globally, reflecting a 5.5-per cent year-on-year increase across thousands of deals. From start-ups to industry giants, tech investment is changing the face of healthcare. AI-driven innovations accounted for nearly half of all digital health advancements globally, with US AI start-ups securing 60 percent of all digital health funding in Q1. A recent report from CB Insights reveals that digital health start-ups across the globe raised $5 billion during the first quarter of this year. This huge investment reflects a trend for fewer, higher-quality deals. In the first quarter of 2025, the average digital health funding deal was $6.4 million, according to the report. The MENA region, Europe, APAC and the Americas have all attracted substantial investments in key areas, including oncology, medical diagnostics, and of course, Artificial Intelligence. 'Oman's healthcare sector is steadily aligning with global trends in digital transformation. From the integration of electronic health records (EHRs) to the adoption of telemedicine and AI-driven diagnostics, the country is embracing innovation to enhance patient care and accessibility,' Dr Viresh Chopra from Oman Dental College says. But with change comes challenges. And in the inertia-heavy, regulation-rich healthcare landscape, the report suggests that the only way to maintain momentum is through global collaboration. Going forward embracing the challenges, the government's commitment to Oman Vision 2040 has further accelerated this progress, encouraging public-private partnerships and investments in health tech. While challenges such as infrastructure and digital literacy remain, Oman's forward-thinking approach signals a promising future where technology and healthcare go hand in hand. 'We are witnessing a clear and progressive shift towards digital transformation in the healthcare sector — both nationally and within our organisation. While global investments, like the $25.1 billion reported by CB Insights in 2024, highlight the momentum of this transformation, Oman is steadily aligning itself with this trend by embracing technology to improve efficiency, patient care and overall health outcomes,' says Ajimsha P A, Head of operations, NMC hospital. Oman's hospitals are witnessing how digital tools are reshaping healthcare delivery. Healthcare providers have invested in Electronic Health Records (EHRs), AI-assisted diagnostics, and cloud-based data systems that streamline operations and reduce administrative burdens. Telemedicine, which gained strong traction during the pandemic, continues to be a critical component in enhancing accessibility for patients, especially in remote areas. Self registration app and pay from home facility, wherein the patient will be directly coming to the outpatient clinic without hassle of waiting in queue and getting the care needed, are the new additions that Oman hospitals would see soon. At the national level, initiatives such as Oman Vision 2040 are driving digitisation across sectors, including healthcare. The Ministry of Health has been proactive in launching digital health portals, mobile apps for appointment bookings and e-prescriptions, and even piloting AI-driven patient monitoring systems. From the integration of electronic health records (EHRs) to the adoption of telemedicine and AI-driven diagnostics, Oman is embracing innovation to enhance patient care and accessibility

Middle East: the emerging global hub for digital health innovation
Middle East: the emerging global hub for digital health innovation

Gulf Business

time4 days ago

  • Gulf Business

Middle East: the emerging global hub for digital health innovation

From virtual hospitals to AI-powered diagnostics, the Middle East is rapidly becoming one of the world's most dynamic frontiers for digital health. Governments across the region are making bold investments in healthcare innovation, with the UAE and Dubai leading the charge. Fuelled by national transformation strategies and the rise of change-making platforms like WHX Tech, the region is no longer just participating in the global health tech movement. It's helping define it. A sector on the rise In the UAE, the digital health market is poised for exponential growth. Valued at $745.7m in 2024, it is projected to reach $2.6bn by 2030, growing at a compound annual rate of 23.5 per cent, according to Grand View Research. This acceleration is being driven by the widespread adoption of telemedicine, AI-assisted diagnostics, remote monitoring tools, and mobile health platforms: all priorities in the country's broader digital transformation agenda. Increasingly, Dubai is emerging as the region's epicentre for digital health events, innovation, and collaboration. This is amid the backdrop of massive investments in AI in the UAE more broadly. In May this year, it was announced that a next-generation AI compute cluster, dubbed Stargate UAE, would be located at the newly established UAE–US AI Campus in Abu Dhabi. T he likes of G42, OpenAI, Oracle, NVIDIA, SoftBank Group and Cisco are behind the project which will span 10 square miles and be the largest such deployment outside of the US. Why Dubai, and why now? As the UAE's most internationally connected city, Dubai is fast becoming the nexus of digital health innovation in the region. The emirate's smart city ambitions, world-class digital infrastructure, and targeted investment in health tech make it the ideal launchpad for WHX Tech. Over the past year, Dubai has accelerated efforts to integrate AI, telemedicine, and predictive analytics across its healthcare system, along with initiatives led by Dubai Health Authority and the Dubai Future Foundation. Districts such as Dubai Healthcare City and Dubai Science Park are drawing global startups, while regulatory innovation and a commitment to open data have positioned the city as a pioneer in next-generation health solutions. WHX Tech, hosted at Dubai World Trade Centre, builds on this momentum by bringing the world's leading health tech voices to the region's most future-focused city. Organised by the team behind WHX Dubai (formerly Arab Health) and in partnership with HIMSS, WHX Tech is designed to convene the sharpest minds in tech, policy, and care delivery. Taking place from 8–10 September 2025 at Dubai World Trade Centre, it will bring together over 5,000 health tech leaders, 300 exhibitors, and 250+ speakers from more than 30 countries. Top speakers are set to include the likes of British fitness coach, entrepreneur, author, and television personality Joe Wicks and prominent British entrepreneur, investor and Dragon's Den Judge Peter Jones. Other healthcare voices will include Jyoti Gupta, the president and CEO for Women's Health and X-Ray at GE HealthCare; Faisal Albaraiki, the CEO of Vision Hospitals, among many more. Meanwhile, the Xcelerate Zone, WHX Tech's dedicated startup stage, will host the region's largest digital health pitch competition with a $50,000 prize, giving early-stage ventures an unprecedented platform to connect with global investors and buyers. As Dr David Rhew, global chief medical officer and VP of healthcare at Microsoft, puts it: 'WHX Tech is uniquely positioned to serve as a digital health hub for the world because of its central geography, large regional investments in digital health and biotechnology and AI, and growing footprint of healthcare organisations located in the Middle East.' Digital health is no longer a trend in the Middle East: it's a strategic priority reshaping healthcare delivery across the region. And WHX Tech is where that movement gathers momentum. Join the digital health revolution. Register now at WHX Tech Dubai:

Africa: How to escape the trap of curative consumption for health production?
Africa: How to escape the trap of curative consumption for health production?

Zawya

time04-07-2025

  • Zawya

Africa: How to escape the trap of curative consumption for health production?

Africa stands at a pivotal moment in its health journey. While challenges such as shifting global priorities and reduced donor support are significant, the more pressing issue lies within the very foundation of our health systems. At the heart of the problem is a structural design that focuses more on responding to illness than on keeping people healthy. With a population of over 1.4 billion — and expected to represent one in five people globally in the near future — the continent finds itself caught in a troubling paradox. Even as we make strides in managing infectious diseases, many African health systems remain under-resourced, stretched thin, and heavily reliant on curative care. The emphasis continues to be on costly, hospital-based treatments rather than on prevention, health education, and community-based approaches that could ease the burden of disease and improve overall well-being. This model is neither sustainable nor equitable, and it keeps us locked in what I call the 'curative consumption trap.' It drains our already limited resources, perpetuates inequities, and undermines our vision for universal health coverage (UHC). It's time to shift from a reactive, hospital-centric model to one that invests in health production — resilient, community-driven, people-centred systems that prevent disease, empower people, and build a healthier future for all Africans. A quick back-of-the-envelope calculation shows that high-income countries spend around $4,000 per capita on healthcare, mostly through public financing. In sub-Saharan Africa, that figure is closer to $40, and that's assuming countries meet the aspirational goal of allocating 15 percent of national budgets to health. Most do not. Can Africa afford healthcare as currently structured? The answer is clearly no. This consumption-based model has colonial roots built for the rich who came to Africa and needed a health system that reflected their needs as they were used to back in their home countries and reinforced by political incentives that favour short-term infrastructure projects over long-term people-centred reforms. During the recent Africa Health Agenda International Conference (AHAIC) 2025 in Kigali, it was evident that many African health systems still focus on treating disease rather than preventing it — a legacy that must be urgently overcome. The curative consumption trap: A vicious cycleHospitals and clinics often serve as the epicentre of care, with resources skewed toward expensive, tertiary-level interventions that politicians prioritise to appeal to voters. This curative bias is evident and at the expense of addressing preventative measures needed to reduce the disease burden, such as the rising tide of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) like diabetes, hypertension, and cancer. In 2019, NCDs accounted for 37 percent of deaths in sub-Saharan Africa, up from 24 percent in 2000, and the burden is rising. Our systems are ill-equipped to manage this growing crisis. The curative consumption trap is fuelled by several factors. First, a post-colonial bias for infrastructure-heavy, specialist-led care over community-based approaches informed by the health needs of those who built the health systems. Second, a health workforce trained to treat illness, not promote wellness. In medical school, for instance, I recall spending just one lethargic month on community health attachment, compared to years learning about diagnosis, surgery, and pharmacology. This narrative is supported by political incentive as infrastructure is a politician vote driver and historical budgeting approaches prioritise infrastructure and equipment procurement. Third, a lack of trust in unfriendly distant supply-driven health systems leads people to seek care only when they are really sick, resulting in late diagnoses and high treatment costs. This isn't just a health issue, but a social and economic crisis. When systems focus on curing instead of preventing, they consume scarce financial and human resources while ignoring root causes such as unsafe water, poor sanitation, undernutrition, and the proliferation of unhealthy processed foods full of industrial trans fats and sweetened beverages. The result is high costs for health services with families pushed into poverty by catastrophic healthcare costs from out of pocket expenditure. The result is a vicious cycle where illness perpetuates poverty, and poverty perpetuates illness. Shifting the focus to health productionTo break this cycle, we need to embrace a model of health production: one that keeps people healthy, empowers communities, and addresses social determinants of health. It should be proactive, equitable, people-centred and sustainable, ensuring that every African has access to the tools and knowledge to live a healthy life, including reproductive health services for adolescents and women. This requires two major shifts. First, we must prioritise preventive and promotive health. Prevention is the cornerstone of health production. Evidence shows that primary healthcare, with a focus on primary care and prevention, community empowerment and engagement and multi-sectorial approaches improves health outcomes, enhances equity, and increases system efficiency. Yet, only 48 percent of Africans have access to primary healthcare services, leaving 615 million people without adequate services. To address this, we need to invest in community health systems including Community Health workers (CHWs), who are the backbone of primary healthcare. CHWs are often the first and only point of contact for underserved communities. They deliver preventive services such as vaccines, they educate communities on healthy practices, and detect early warning signs of disease, yet, many remain underpaid, undertrained, and disconnected from formal health systems. Governments need to commit to financing and integrating CHW programmes into national health systems, as outlined in the 2018 WHO guidelines— not as stopgaps, but as core pillars of national health strategy. Promotive health also means tackling the social determinants of health—poverty, education, clean water and sanitation, nutrition, and environmental factors. We also need policies that tackle risk factors. Taxing unhealthy products like industrial trans fats, tobacco, alcohol, and sugar-sweetened beverages can reduce the burden of NCDs while generating revenue for health programmes. These funds can be channelled into community-led initiatives that promote clean water, sanitation, and nutrition, addressing the root causes of disease. Second, we need to empower communities as active participants in their health. Health systems cannot succeed without the trust and participation of the people they serve. Too often, African health systems are designed around institutions and diseases rather than people. Some have jokingly referred to our ministries of health as "ministries of disease" — a reflection of how disconnected the system can feel from lived realities. Communities — including youth, women, and marginalised groups — must have a seat at the decision-making table. Health policies should be co-designed and governed by those they are meant to serve. It's time to update the current WHO framework and recognise 'people' as the seventh building block of effective health systems, alongside service delivery, health workforce, information systems, health financing, access to medicines and health technologies, as well as leadership governance. Empowering communities also requires fostering accountability. Civil society-led mechanisms can hold governments, private sector and other partners accountable for delivering on UHC commitments, ensuring that policies align with the principles of social justice. By giving communities a stake in their health systems, we can build trust, encourage early health-seeking behaviour, and reduce the reliance on curative care. Moreover, African governments must address inefficiencies and corruption, optimising the use of limited resources. By embracing digital technology and artificial intelligence, we can improve health data systems, enhance service delivery, and target interventions more effectively noting technology must be deployed at the community level, not just in hospitals, to enhance equitable access, particularly at the last mile. A call to action: Building the health systems of the futureThe curative consumption trap is a legacy of colonial health systems and misaligned global priorities. It is not inevitable. Africa has the opportunity to redefine its health agenda, leveraging its youthful population, rich cultural heritage, and growing technological innovation. But this requires bold leadership and collective action. African governments should prioritise health in national budgets, recognising that health is not a cost but an investment in human capital for socioeconomic development. Donors and global health partners must shift their focus from short-term, disease-specific interventions to long-term health system strengthening in line with the Lusaka Agenda, an effort for all to prioritise strengthening health systems, promoting sustainable health financing and enhancing equity through national level co-ordination. As we approach 2030, the deadline for achieving UHC, we must decide: Do we continue down the path of reactive, costly care with limited returns or do we embrace a model that produces health, dignity, and opportunity for all?The curative trap may be the legacy we inherited, but health production is the legacy we must build. © Copyright 2022 Nation Media Group. All Rights Reserved. Provided by SyndiGate Media Inc. (

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store