At the end of November, UNITE gathered parliamentarians from around the world to participate in a fieldtrip to Kenya. The objective was to showcase Unitaid’s important work providing access to innovation and improving quality of healthcare services around the world by visiting different project sites in the country.
The delegation comprised Hon. Jean Francois Mbaye, former MP of France, Hon. Federica Onori, MP from Italy, Hon. Sveinung Stensland, MP from Norway, and Hon. Daniel Molokele, MP from Zimbabwe.
Additionally, Kenyan UNITE members also joined the activity, including Hon. Dennitah Ghati, former member of the National Assembly, Hon. Mark Nyamita, member of the National Assembly, and Senator Hamida Kibwana, member of the Senate. The delegation was led by UNITE’s Regional Coordinator for Africa, Abdul Karim Ibrahim.
The group travelled to multiple rural areas of the country to visit different hospitals where Unitaid had installed projects related to Women and Children’s Health. The visit further highlighted how Unitaid’s CxCa (Cervical Cancer) and AMPLI-PPHI (Accelerating Measurable Progress and Leveraging Investments for Postpartum Haemorrhage Impact) projects improved access to health services for women by empowering health providers at the primary health care level, decentralizing care. Participants had the opportunity to talk with local affected communities and observe the impact of Unitaid’s efforts to reduce barriers in access to life-saving health tools. Throughout the three days, UNITE members observed first-hand, the vital role of Unitaid in supporting Kenyan innovators to provide scalable solutions to critical health needs.
The visit also afforded UNITE and partners the opportunity to engage with various state institutions, including the Kenyan Senate, National Assembly, and Ministry of Health. Additionally, the delegation also met with local power representatives, such as the Government of Makueni County, which gracefully received the delegation and accompanied the visit to the local hospital.
UNITE and Unitaid have been partners for many years, with this trip being the latest demonstration of their long-standing collaboration and successful strategy to jointly raise political visibility around the innovation and access to health agenda and the importance of Unitaid for global health.
Unitaid urged the parliamentarians present to take up the mantle of raising awareness and mobilizing support through their respective parliaments and governments to commit more resources to funding the lifesaving work of Unitaid around the world. In particular, Unitaid’s Global Board member and Community representative, Louis da Gama, passionately underscored the positive impact Unitaid’s work continues to make in the lives of marginalized and vulnerable communities. This appeal was further emboldened by the chilling account of Sally Agallo Kwenda of Kenya’s Ostomy Association. Ms. Kwenda is a survivor of HIV and Cervical Cancer, who courageously and kindly shared her story to inspire survivors while also advocating for legislative and in-kind support.
Members of the UNITE delegation jointly expressed their appreciation for the opportunity to observe such meaningful work, as well as for the great collaboration between UNITE and Unitaid, and commended the vast chain of national and local-level actors championing global health every day. UNITE members also committed to take the message back to their respective parliaments on the need to keep supporting Unitaid to “save lives faster.” UNITE calls on all its members to continue promoting the good work of Unitaid, as well as multilateralism in general, to increase equitable access to quality healthcare services for all.
