COUNTY TO SET UP A FUND TO RUN HEALTH FACILITIES
Health Services is the highly funded department in Kakamega County with a 30 percent budgetary allocation every Financial Year. This denotes the significance of the Ministry not only to the Kakamega County Government but the residents as well.
Friday during a joint meeting of the County Executive and County Assembly, Kakamega Governor H.E DR. FCPA Wycliffe Ambetsa Oparanya announced that beginning next month, the County Government will begin the process of operationalizing a special Fund that will be mandated with running all hospitals in Kakamega. This Fund, the Governor added, will ensure that monies collected from the health facilities are ploughed back to the facilities, in entirety.
“Delays in disbursement of funds from the Exchequer has been a major obstacle in delivery of services in this sector; this compels us to re-strategize on how we can allocate all the revenue received from hospitals back to the facilities,” he said.
Governor Oparanya also revealed that the National Government has shown interest in managing the Kakamega County Teaching and Referral Hospital, Level VI, expressing optimism that it will be part of the President’s agenda during his upcoming visit of the Western region.
To actualise his vision of connecting households with clean piped water dubbed “Amatsi Khumukuru”, the County boss disclosed that following his request, the National Government’s Ministry of Water has seconded a Water Engineer to Kakamega County; the officer’s role, he explained, will be to solely focus on water connectivity across the County.
“The Cabinet Secretary for Water and Sanitation Hon. Sicily Kariuki called me yesterday to convey the good news; this Financial Year we have increased funding to the water sector to ensure we realize our dream of supplying water to a majority of the residents,” he noted.
The Governor exuded confidence that through the firm structures laid down by his administration, all projects initiated by the County Government will be completed terming the Government an ongoing concern that does not end with the outgoing leadership.
Deputy Governor Prof. Philip Museve Kutima called for close working relationship between the Executive and Assembly and assured that he will complete all the key projects initiated by Governor Oparanya if and when he is elected as the second Governor of Kakamega County in the forthcoming general elections.
The meeting was attended by Members of Kakamega County Assembly led by Rt. Hon. Speaker Morris Buluma, CECMs, County Secretary and Head of Public Service Madam Jacinta Aluoch Odhiambo, Chief Officers, Members of the County Public Service Board led by the Vice Chairperson CPA John Subai, Advisors, CEOs, Directors, HoDs, Managers, among other Government Officers.