Residents of Migori and Nyamira counties will now have easier access to safe and reliable maternal health services following a Ksh 110 million investment by the M-Pesa Foundation in new health facilities.
The Foundation has put Ksh 50 million into the construction of a modern integrated Maternal, Newborn and Child Health (MNCH) unit at Awendo Sub-County Hospital in Migori.
The new facility includes a theatre for caesarean sections, a two-bed delivery room, a sterile equipment store, a 12-bed antenatal ward, a 20-bed postnatal ward, and an eight-bed newborn unit fitted with a kangaroo room.
It also has two consultation rooms, a family planning room, a nursing officer’s office, a pharmacy, a records section, a waiting bay, and a nurse station.
In Nyamira, the Foundation has commissioned a Ksh 60 million maternal and newborn unit at Nyamusi Sub-County Hospital.
The new centre will serve expectant mothers with an 11-bed antenatal ward, a 24-bed postnatal ward, and a 22-bed newborn unit with a nine-bed kangaroo room. It also includes a family planning room, a two-bed delivery room, and a theatre for caesarean deliveries.
“Access to maternal health remains a challenge for many families in Kenya, particularly in rural areas where infrastructure is limited. We invest in health through programmes that directly address these gaps, focusing on maternal and child health as a priority. By partnering with county governments, we ensure that facilities like these bring quality, affordable, and accessible services closer to communities that need them most,” Nicholas Ng’ang’a, Chairman of M-Pesa Foundation, said.
The two hospitals have long struggled with growing demand, forcing expectant mothers to travel long distances to county referral hospitals to deliver their babies. Awendo Sub-County Hospital alone serves a catchment population of over 142,000 people.
Nyamusi Sub-County Hospital, which caters to more than 21,000 people, records about 60 to 70 deliveries each month and provides antenatal care to more than 100 mothers monthly.
The strain on these facilities has often led to delays in emergency response, high referral rates, and preventable maternal and newborn complications.
The new health units are expected to reduce these challenges and give mothers a safer and more dignified childbirth experience.
Speaking at the commissioning, Evelyne Alonde, Nursing Officer in Charge at Awendo Sub-County Hospital, said the new unit would transform maternal care in the region.
“Pregnant women no longer have to be referred to distant facilities like the County Referral Hospital to deliver. This will bring emergency response closer, improve service delivery all around, and most importantly, help reduce maternal and neonatal mortality rates in our county. For us, this is a game changer,” she said.
Safaricom, through its foundations, has previously invested Ksh 101 million in Migori and Ksh 4.1 million in Nyamira in the health sector, reaching more than 300,000 people.
With the new maternal health units in place, M-Pesa Foundation says it is not only building health facilities but also restoring dignity and hope for thousands of mothers and families who previously faced uncertainty during childbirth.
Leave a comment