The Kenya Private Sector Alliance (KEPSA) through the Kenya Healthcare Federation has donated Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) to the County Government of Mombasa. The PPEs donations worth Ksh. 5 million have been donated to 3 counties; Mombasa, Kajiado and Machakos.
The PPEs are a donation by businessman Dr. Manu Chandaria through the COVID-19 fund to KEPSA. The donation was made as a response to the rising number of COVID-19 infections in the country.
KEPSA has launched a number of initiatives in response to the COVID-19 pandemic to highlight the importance of the partnership between the private and public sectors in Kenya. A 24-hour call center and a COVID-19 information portal were launched to aid business owners to get responses on business and health matters for their workers, to strengthen their supply chains, business initiatives, and economic mitigation. The Wheels for Life initiative was also established as a program to ensure pregnant women are able to call the toll-free line- 1196 to talk to a doctor or get free emergency transport during curfew hours to facilitate safe delivery.
In his remarks during the handover, Mr. Mohammed Hersi, Chairman of Kenya Tourism Federation and Tourism Sector Lead at KEPSA, lauded the efforts of the Kenyan manufacturing industry for ensuring that PPEs are manufactured locally. “It is our intension and commitment to keep facilitating and sustaining businesses and ensuring a conducive environment for the businesses community” he said.
“We are committed to partner with both the county and the national governments together with other stakeholders in the fight against the pandemic,” said Ms. Martha Cheruto, KEPSA Deputy CEO.
While receiving the PPE Donation at his office, the Governor of Mombasa County H.E Hassan Ali Joho thanked KEPSA and commended the good work KEPSA was doing towards mitigating the pandemic. Governor Joho also acknowledged the need for more sensitization on the COVID-19 guidelines to curb the growing laxity among Kenyans.
KEPSA through Sustainable Inclusive Business is also implementing COAST Project (Creating Opportunities and Alleviating Poverty Through Sustainable Trade) in Mombasa County that was launched in July 2020. The project was launched with an aim to create awareness on waste management and increase participants’ capacity to develop business cases through mentorship.