- Governor Orengo promised to ensure that, in due course, the county will pay salaries to the CHPs, instead of the Sh3,000 stipend.
- Again, the CHPs' contribution to society had seen the mother-to-child transmission of Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV), Orengo said.
Image: JOSIAH ODANGA
The Siaya County Government has committed to prioritising Community Health Promoters (CHPs) in the distribution of free seeds and subsidised fertilisers.
Data on school-going children of the CHPs will also be taken for them to be given priority during the issuance of county education bursaries.
Governor James Orengo on Monday said that this was in appreciation of the good care that CHPs have been extending to members of the community.
"As a county, we have a fertiliser and seeds subsidy programme and cheap tractor hire services. We already have your data and I want to promise you that you will be prioritised during the distribution of subsidized fertilizers and free seeds," Orengo said.
"We also want the data of your children so that we give them priority during the issuance of education bursaries."
The governor said that the work of caring for the health of the community members at the lowest level of society is not for the fainthearted, and so, worth appreciating.
Also, Orengo promised to ensure that, in due course, the county will pay salaries to the CHPs, instead of the Sh3,000 that they are currently paid in stipend.
This, he noted, will be regularised just as his administration recently did to the Early Childhood Development (ECD) teachers who now earn a monthly basic salary of Sh16,000.
Even so, he observed, the Sh3,000 stipend is the highest that CHPs in any part of the country are currently being paid, Orengo observed.
He went on to urge the CHPs, the majority being women, to bundle together in a cooperative society to be able to access county funds that have been set aside to promote small businesses.
Orengo was speaking at his home in Ugenya during the official kitting of the CHPs, in partnership with the national government.
A total of 2,128 CHPs were kitted and given uniforms.
They were distributed as per subcounty as follows: 518 (Alego Usonga), 242 (Ugenya), 394 (Gem), 214 (Ugunja), 397 (Rarieda) and 363 (Bondo).
The CHPs received smartphones, baby-weighing scales, sugar level and pressure measuring machines, spotlights and water bottles.
The smartphones will assist in communicating with community members and linking the sick with various health facilities.
The spotlights will aid in movement in the pitch-dark villages, especially during emergency health situations at night.
ODM leader Raila Odinga's wife Ida Odinga who also attended the event underscored the primary healthcare work that the CHPs and urged them to continue being nice to the people.
"You do take care of the sick, and the injured and offer first aid in case of accidents. Sometimes you are called upon to assist women in giving birth and even accompany those who need care to hospitals. May you continue being nice to the people, " Ida said.
Ida hailed Orengo for the recognition and empowerment of the CHPs for, she said, the act goes a long way in touching every person at the grassroots.
"Orengo, this is the best thing that you have done for the people. Caring for the people is the most important thing," she said.
Ida called on the CHPs, locally known as Nyamrerwa, to be role models in the community as wayward habits such as alcoholism may spoil the society if emulated.
Orengo explained that the CHPs in Siaya have spearheaded the reduction of disease burden from 33 per cent to 19 per cent due to regular household visitations and registrations.
Due to the spirited effort of the CHPs, Orengo said, stillbirth deliveries had risen from 56 per cent to 96 per cent, a condition that has often led to maternal and child death.
Again, the CHPs' contribution to society had seen the mother-to-child transmission of Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV), he said.
Immunization coverage of children and adults for various illnesses had also increased from 67 to 99 per cent courtesy of the CHPs, the governor said.
Siaya county assembly Speaker George Okode said that the House will pass relevant legislation to ensure that the Nyamrerwas are paid salaries by law.
East Asembo MCA Gordon Onguru asked the CHPs to remain unwavering in their support of the governor and warned that they would be lashed should they work (politically) with Orengo's opponents.