- KPA chairperson Dr Supa Tunje in a statement said the government needs to take emergency action to address ongoing vaccine shortages through supplementary budgetary allocations.
- Supa said childhood vaccination has proven to be a cost-effective way of preventing disease.
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The Kenya Paediatric Association (KPA) has called for urgent action from the government to address the current vaccine shortage.
KPA chairperson Dr Supa Tunje in a statement said the government needs to take emergency action to address ongoing vaccine shortages through supplementary budgetary allocations.
"The government needs to restore, increase and ring-fence funding for vaccine procurement and distribution and ensure no child is left unprotected from disease due to budgetary constraints," she said.
"The government needs to uphold commitments for funding to UNICEF and GAVI to secure sustainable vaccine supplies for years to come," she added.
Statistically, Kenya has been able to reduce child mortality resulting from preventable disease by more than half, from 96 per 100,000 in 1993 to 41 per 100,000 in 2022.
According to recent data, the proportion of fully vaccinated children in Kenya rose from 59 per cent to an impressive 80 per cent in 2022 accounting for a significant decline in diseases like polio,tetanus, diphtheria, whooping cough, diarrhoea, pneumonia and measles.
Supa said childhood vaccination has proven to be a cost-effective way of preventing disease by not only curbing the spread of deadly infections but also lessening the risk of severe long-term health consequences like mental and physical disabilities.
This merited progress, she said, currently lies at risk amidst the vaccine shortage in the country.
"Budget cuts and unpaid debts have triggered a shortage of essential vaccines to our most vulnerable: newborns and children under five," she said.
"These cuts undermine the government's commitment to attaining Universal Health Coverage (UHC) and could reverse the decline in childhood childhood mortality and rates of disease," she added.
According to the Council of Governors, some counties have reported outbreaks of vaccine-preventable diseases.
"This crisis threatens the health and future of 1.6 million infants, a similar number of pregnant women and 750,000 ten-year-old girls," she said.
"The economic impact of increased disease prevalence would be devastating, diverting resources from prevention to the costly treatment and management of preventable diseases,"she added.