The new health units to ease congestion, reduce referrals, and improve health care for mothers and newborns.
Residents of Migori and Nyamira counties will now have better access to quality maternal health services following a KES 110 million investment by M-Pesa Foundation in critical health infrastructure.
The Foundation has invested KES 50 million in the construction of a new integrated Maternal, Newborn and Child Health (MNCH) unit at Awendo Sub-County Hospital in Migori.
The facility features a theatre for caesarean sections, a 2-bed delivery room, a sterile equipment store, a 12-bed antenatal ward, a 20-bed postnatal ward, an 8-bed Newborn Unit with a kangaroo room, 2 consultation rooms, a family planning room, a nursing officer-in-charge office, a pharmacy, records section, waiting bay, and a nurse station.
In Nyamira County, the Foundation has officially commissioned a KES 60 million Maternal Newborn Child Heath unit at Nyamusi Sub-County Hospital.
The facility will feature an 11-bed antenatal ward, a 24-bed postnatal ward, a 22-bed Newborn Unit with a 9-bed kangaroo room, a family planning room, a theatre for caesarean cases, and a 2-bed delivery room for normal deliveries.
“Access to maternal health remains a challenge for many families in Kenya, particularly in rural areas where infrastructure is limited. We invest in health through programmes that directly address these gaps, focusing on maternal and child health as a priority.
By partnering with county governments, we ensure that facilities like these bring quality, affordable, and accessible services closer to communities that need them most,” said Nicholas Ng’ang’a, Chairman, M-Pesa Foundation.
For years, health facilities in both counties have been overstretched, with many expectant mothers forced to travel long distances, in some cases to county referral hospitals to access safe delivery services.
Awendo Sub- County hospital alone serves a catchment of 142,452 people, whereas Nyamusi Sub County hospital has a catchment population of 21,149 people, with an average of 60-70 deliveries per month and an antenatal care profile of 100-120 mothers per month.
These growing demands have contributed to delays in emergency response, high referral rates, and avoidable maternal and neonatal complications.
Speaking during the commissioning, Evelyne Alonde, Nursing Officer In Charge at Awendo Sub-County Hospital, welcomed the development, saying:
“Pregnant women no longer have to be referred to distant facilities like the County Referral Hospital to deliver. This will bring emergency response closer, improve service delivery all around, and most importantly, help reduce maternal and neonatal mortality rates in our county. For us, this is a game changer.”
To date, Safaricom, through its Foundations, has invested KES 101 million in Migori and KES 4.1 million in Nyamira in the health sector, reaching more than 300,000 people with improved services.
With these new units, M-Pesa Foundation is not only building health facilities but also restoring dignity and hope for thousands of mothers and families who previously faced uncertainty during childbirth.
