We are alert and ready to handle Ebola cases in case of an outbreak in the country, Health CS Sicily Kariuki has said.
World Health Organization director general Tedros Ghebreyesus on Wednesday declared Ebola outbreak a "public health emergency of international concern".
This is a rare designation only used for the gravest epidemics, and the move may encourage wealthy donor countries to provide more cash.
WHO says they are struggling with a shortfall of Sh5.4 billion to fight the disease in the DRC.
“Because of its national and international concern and impact, we have moved in and invested. We have equipped hospitals, especially those near border posts and ensured they have the facilities required,” Kariuk said on Friday.
Last month, there was a public scare in the country after reports that a patient with symptoms similar to those exhibited by Ebola victims had been admitted at the Kericho County Referral Hospital.
The patient had crossed the border from the neighbouring Uganda, where cases of the disease outbreak had been reported.
This made senators to raise concerns over the level of the government preparedness to counter Ebola in case of an outbreak.
That a patient suspected to have contracted Ebola found his way to Kericho shows the government isn’t prepared to handle the disease, they said.
“We have trained the HR in these facilities, and then we keep vigil and ensure people crossing the border post are detected.” Kariuki said.
At the Busia Kenya Port Health Desk, all arriving travellers, including truck drivers, undergo Ebola screening.
The WHO's international health regulations, drafted in 2005, say that the international emergency label should apply to a situation that is serious, unusual or unexpected; carries implications for public health beyond the affected State's national border; and may require immediate international action.
“Although we recognise that Health is a devolved function it is always useful to look at us as being interdependent. We haven't invested in the preparations without involving the governors,” Kariuki noted.
Congo’s epidemic is the second-worst worldwide since West Africa’s Ebola outbreak in 2014-16, with 2,084 cases and 1,405 deaths since being declared in August.
The WHO, however, stressed that no country should close its borders or place any restrictions on travel or trade, adding that the risk of the disease spreading outside the region was not high.
WHO said unfair profiling of travellers from the Ebola-hit regions will only worsen the situation and increase the spread of the deadly disease.
"No country should close its borders or place any restrictions on travel and trade. Such measures are usually implemented out of fear and have no basis in science," WHO said in a statement.
