• Governors called for the release of funds to county governments to enable them to procure commodities and equipment in response to Covid-19.
• All the 47 counties have set up isolation facilities but they need to be equipped.
Counties are not yet prepared to tackle the Covid-19 pandemic.
In a memorandum to the Senate’s ad hoc Committee on Covid-19, the Council of Governors says counties are facing challenges providing laboratory services, personal protective equipment (PPEs) and isolation and quarantine facilities.
Governors also cited lack of adequate hygiene materials, including sanitiser, handwashing soap, sanitary towels, adult and child diapers for persons living with disabilities as well as reduced access to food, water and other basic commodities.
They also said that counties are faced with a shortage of contraceptive options, including condoms and oral birth control pills.
CoG said there are only two laboratories at the national level with their corresponding branches carrying out tests, which poses a great risk to the country since most counties have active cases.
“Most counties have active cases and accreditation to operationalise regional laboratories has not been done and they do not have sample collection kits. These two laboratories and their branches do not have adequate testing kits,” reads part of the submission to the ad hoc committee.
It added that counties do not have sample collection kits and they have not been advised on the mode of transport for samples’ to the two laboratories.
“[The] county governments of Machakos, Malindi, Wajir, Busia and Trans Nzoia have laboratories constructed and equipped by the World Bank. These can ease the burden of testing if they are supplied with testing kits,” the memorandum said.
The governors also decried the level of competition between the national and county governments for PPEs. They noted that the last distribution of the PPEs was done on March 20, and the prices are too high for the counties. This has also exposed health workers to the disease.
“County governments who have tried to purchase the kits have failed due to competition between the national government and county governments. This has exposed the county health workers and the prices of the few available kits are too high,” they said.
The governors called for the release of funds to the counties to enable them to procure commodities and equipment in response to Covid-19 and provide PPEs to healthcare workers as well as build their capacity in management and infection prevention.
“None of the counties to date has received money from the national government in support of Covid-19 response,” the county chiefs said.
They further said there was a need for activation of the Gene expert machines to enable all the 47 counties to carry out testing to ease the burden and frustration of transporting samples to Nairobi.
It added that all the counties have set up isolation facilities but they need to be well equipped.
Governors noted that as a result of Covid-19, industries in non-essential services such as hospitality, tea and coffee plantations, construction, manufacturing of non-essential and other basic products continue to lay off staff due to closure of businesses or downscaling of operations.
"This will result in an increase in the dependency ratio, which will strain individual available income to provide for the households,” governors added.
They added that budget-making and division of revenue processes by the counties, particularly public participation and statutory approvals, will be affected by movement restrictions.
The memorandum further noted that the outbreak of Rift Valley Fever and Peste des Petits Ruminants (PPR) has been reported in northern counties.
It also cited a rise of gender-based violence and children defilement, invasion of fall armyworms in the Rift Valley and South Nyanza counties and spread of desert locust.
Edited by E.Kibii