The Kenya Medical Supplies Agency is set to receive $32 million (Sh4.2b) from World Bank for the recapitalisation of the Agency.
The funding to come in June will see KEMSA expand the scope of its medical equipment distribution across the country.
The World Bank boost comes after a Sh2 billion disbursement that the government injected into Kemsa in November to enable it to purchase drugs and reduce supply delays.
Kemsa board chair Irungu Nyakera said the World Bank funding will enable the entity grow its footprint in the country in an effort to cut on transportation cost
“Covid-19 led to a capital erosion of Sh4 billion from Kemsa that’s why when I came in we were not able to pay our suppliers. The World Bank is also looking to capitalise KEMSA from July so we are looking at their support,” said Nyakera in an interview with the Financial Fortune.
KEMSA has been grappling with high debt especially from the counties that have in the past slowed activities.
As of 2024 the counties owe the supplier over Sh3 billion in pending bills.
County governments, which are the major clients and have been procuring medical supplies directly from Kemsa collectively owe the agency approximately Sh6 billion.
The agency last month singled out four counties with huge debts amounting to Sh464 million which include Nairobi (Sh235 million), Homa Bay (Sh104 million), Kakamega and Taita Taveta with Sh66 million and Sh59 million, respectively.
The chairman said that currently KEMSA owe suppliers about Sh3.2 billion while its debtors owe about Sh6 billion.
“We have now received payments from several counties as well as government recapitalising KEMSA because of the confidence they have in the new administration,” said Nyakera.
With the financing from World Bank, the supplier said a new warehouse would be opened in Mombasa to serve the 16 counties. The one opened in Kisumu last year currently serves 19 counties
“We will have a third one by next year,” said Nyakera.
