NAIROBI– Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale has reaffirmed the government’s commitment to addressing long-standing employment and welfare concerns affecting staff under the Universal Health Coverage (UHC) program.

This follows a high-level consultative meeting with the Kenya Union of Clinical Officers (KUCO) and the Kenya Union of Nurses (KNUN), held at Afya House, Nairobi.

During the meeting, CS Duale confirmed that funds have been secured to transition eligible UHC staff to permanent and pensionable terms — a long-awaited milestone for thousands of health workers.

However, he emphasized that this transition will only be implemented after a comprehensive verification exercise scheduled for July 2025.

“This is a clean-up process to protect public resources. Only staff who are duly verified and provide the required documentation will be transitioned,” said CS Duale.

The verification will be conducted jointly by national and county government officials, in collaboration with representatives from KUCO and KNUN. The process aims to carry out a full headcount, reconcile payroll data, and ensure that only legitimate UHC staff — including those hired directly by county governments — are transitioned into permanent roles.

Next Steps and Return-to-Work Formula

The results of the verification exercise will form the basis for signing a Return-to-Work Formula in August 2025. This agreement will enable payroll harmonization across counties and mark the beginning of devolved payroll management for health workers under UHC.

CS Duale urged union officials to encourage full cooperation from their members, stressing the importance of submitting all required documentation during the verification period.

Union Representation and Dialogue

KUCO Secretary General and CEO George Gibore, KUCO Chairperson Peterson Wachira, Deputy Secretary General Austin Oduor, and Treasurer Mary Boniface attended the meeting. KNUN was represented by its Secretary General Hon. Seth Panyako.

Speaking after the meeting, George Gibore welcomed the government’s commitment, stating:

“This is a step in the right direction. KUCO remains committed to safeguarding the rights of clinical officers and ensuring that all UHC staff receive fair treatment and recognition for their vital contributions to frontline healthcare.”

Additional Issues Addressed

The meeting also tackled several other critical areas affecting healthcare professionals, including:

• Implementation of revised salary structures developed by the Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC).
• Progress on the 2017 Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) and its pending clauses.
• Integration of specialized clinical officers and nurses into the Social Health Authority (SHA), which will play a central role in delivering UHC services.
• Support for the Quality Healthcare and Patient Safety Bill, 2025, which CS Duale described as a transformative milestone for Kenya’s health sector and a key accelerator toward Vision 2030.

Also present were Dr. Daniel Mwai, Advisor to the Presidential Economic Transformation Council; Eng. Anthony Lenaiyara, Acting CEO of the Digital Health Agency; and senior Ministry of Health officials.

KUCO has called on all its members to fully support the ongoing verification efforts by ensuring timely submission of required documents and cooperating with the verification teams.

“This process is crucial to achieving lasting solutions for our workforce. We urge every clinical officer to participate actively and ensure their voices are heard,” said KUCO Chairperson Peterson Wachira.