Lodwar – 21st January, 2025 (Public Communication and Media Relations)
The Senior Health Management Team has been briefed on an upcoming study to be conducted in Kakuma Refugee Camp and Kalobeyei Settlement which aims to examine refugee access to healthcare services and impact on the broader health ecosystem.
Titled “Health Systems Resilience Enhancement and Refugee Response Project: Kenya Case Study,” the study has been commissioned by UNHCR and will be conducted by Strathmore University through interviews.
The qualitative study will engage key stakeholders, including the sub-county health management team, the International Rescue Committee (responsible for healthcare in Kakuma), the Kenya Red Cross Society (operating in Kalobeyei), frontline actors and policymakers.
The Deputy Director of Policy, Planning Monitoring, and Evaluation, Sarah Lokaale, emphasized the importance of including the host community impact on the refugee healthcare services and vice-versa in the study.
“The Kalobeyei Integrated Socio-Economic Development Plan (KISEDP) emphasizes the need for integration to strengthen all sectors, including healthcare, as partner budgets and funding shrink,” she said.
The KISEDP is a 15-year comprehensive, multi-sectoral initiative designed to benefit refugees and host community in the county. It is currently in its second phase; 2023–2027.
“This study comes at a time when UNHCR is seeking to change policy on its provision of healthcare services to refugees globally,” said Dr Ben Ngoye of the Strathmore Business School’s Institute for Healthcare Management.
The study aims to inform policies in refugee-hosting countries on improving healthcare access. It will provide insights on building resilient healthcare systems and the supporting role UNHCR will play. Similar studies have been commissioned in other selected countries.
County Tuberculosis, Leprosy, and Lung Diseases Coordinator and Chair of the Research Health Committee, Dr Job Okemwa, highlighted the challenges faced by healthcare systems in refugee camp and settlement.
“Human resources for health, financing, scope of the services, and infrastructure are overstretched, with heightened risks of disease outbreaks,” he said.
As part of the study, Dr Ngoye added that they would also map refugees’ healthcare journeys to better understand their access to healthcare.
