By Dorothy Musyoka
The Cabinet Secretary for Health, Aden Duale, has inaugurated the National Maternal and Perinatal Death Surveillance and Response (MPDSR) Steering Committee, to end preventable maternal and newborn deaths across the country.
The initiative is anchored within Kenya’s Universal Health Coverage (UHC) agenda and aligns with the national commitment that no woman should lose her life while giving birth and no newborn should die from preventable causes.
Implementation will be accelerated through the Every Woman Every Newborn Everywhere (EWENE) Acceleration Plan.
Speaking during the inauguration, CS Duale underscored that the MPDSR framework will be operationalised at facility, sub-county and county levels through routine, structured and action-oriented review meetings.
Findings from the reviews will inform national decision-making to address persistent gaps in emergency obstetric and newborn care, referral systems, blood and essential commodity availability, and staffing shortages. The evidence generated will guide policy reforms, targeted financing and coordinated implementation across the health system.
The MPDSR approach seeks to transform loss into learning by turning every maternal and perinatal death into actionable insight that protects future mothers and newborns.
According to the CS the Social Health Authority (SHA) and the Digital Health Agency (DHA) will enable maternity reimbursement for qualifying Level 2 and Level 3 facilities, strengthening primary healthcare and reducing financial barriers to skilled delivery.
“The ministry has issued a policy directive to SHA to enable maternity reimbursement of qualifying level 2 and level 3 facilities,” stated CS Duale.
The CS also revealed that SHA benefits package is also under review to ensure full alignment with national maternal and newborn care guidelines
In addition, the National Blood Transfusion Services are being strengthened to address critical blood shortages identified in previous MPDSR reviews.
“A woman should not die because blood was not available,” Duale reaffirmed.
CS Duale called on healthcare providers to uphold the highest standards of professionalism, dignity, compassion and clinical excellence in maternal and newborn care.
He further tasked the Steering Committee with ensuring that its recommendations result in tangible improvements in health facilities, referral networks, commodity security, financing mechanisms and workforce support.
The inauguration ceremony was attended by Principal Secretary for Public Health and Professional Standards Mary Muthoni, Principal Secretary for Medical Services Ouma Oluga, Director-General for Health Patrick Amoth, Council of Governors CEO Mary Mwiti, as well as development partners including Pilar Molina (UNFPA), Shaheen Nilofer (UNICEF) and Neema Rusibamayila (WHO).