The government has received 3.2 million doses of the polio vaccine and is expecting another 3 million of the BCG vaccine, Principal Secretary of the State Department for Medical Services Dr. Ouma Oluga has said.
The PS has assured Kenyans that there is no cause for alarm and that the government will catch up on the campaign and get all children who are missing their doses to be immunized.
“3.2 million Doses of polio are currently being cleared at the port of Mombasa for distribution by 10th June 2025, and the 3.0 million BCG vaccine doses are expected at the port, with distribution planned by 15th June 2025,” Dr. Oluga said.
In a press statement on Friday, Dr. Oluga acknowledged challenges currently facing vaccine stock levels and immunization efforts across the country but noted the ministry’s commitment to safeguarding the health and well-being of all Kenyans.
The current vaccine stock levels are; two weeks of stock remaining for the BCG tuberculosis vaccine, two weeks of stock remaining for the polio vaccine, and one month of stock for the rotavirus vaccine.
“With the received vaccines, we are going to have 5 months of stock and we have already made another order for the second batch to arrive in the next 8 to 12 weeks, he said
Dr. Oluga confirmed that 35 Counties have the vaccine, but the remaining 12 of the 47 countries have run out, explaining, though, that they have been redistributing what they have from the 35 Countries to those that do not have it.
He acknowledged that some people have been hoarding the vaccines and are not willing to distribute them to those facilities that do not have them but noted that with the assurances of the vaccine at the port, they have started releasing them.
“We are happy that facilities are sharing. We have today received at the port, polio vaccines that are undergoing clearing and in the next 8 days they will be distributed across the country,” the PS reiterated
Dr Oluga explained that in the last one year, there have been challenges in the procurement process both at the local and global levels.
“The low vaccine stock levels have resulted from a combination of factors, mainly the Global vaccine supply bottlenecks, which continue to impact several countries,” he said.
Kenya, Dr. Oluga explained, is among the countries that have aggregated the procurement of vaccines through the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), and there have been a number of challenges in the global supply chain for specific vaccines, and this is not only being experienced in Kenya but also in other countries.
He particularly named the rotavirus vaccine challenge, saying that Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, has written to beneficiaries about it but said Kenya is lucky there is still one month’s stock, although they will be monitoring the situation and do everything to ensure all are protected from vaccine-preventable diseases.
“We know how valuable a vaccine is for a Country. We want to ensure no child will miss out on a vaccine. We have adequate stock for other vaccines, such as DPT, measles, rubella and HPV, and are therefore urging all our people to go to health facilities and receive the vaccinations,” said the PS.
The Ministry. Dr. Oluga said, are establishing a strategic vaccine reserve in all 47 Counties through a programme that will be sustainably financed and efficiently operated.
“The Ministry reassures all Kenyans that no child will miss a single dose of any vaccine, thanks to the Zero-Dose Catch-Up Mechanism established and operational under the Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda (BETA),” Dr. Oluga said.
By Wangari Ndirangu
