NAIROBI, Kenya Aug 29 – The Ministry of Health has announced a coordinated preparedness plan to mitigate health risks linked to anticipated heavy rains, flooding and displacement during the 2026/2027 El Niño season.

📻 Breaking It Down

Public Health Principal Secretary Mary Muthoni said the Health Sector El Niño Contingency Plan brings together national and county governments, emergency agencies, humanitarian organisations and development partners to anticipate, prevent, detect and respond rapidly to flood-related health emergencies.

“The Health Sector El Niño Contingency Plan provides a common framework” for coordinated preparedness and response, Muthoni said.

The Ministry is particularly concerned about water- and food-borne diseases, including typhoid, cholera, dysentery, hepatitis A and other diarrhoeal illnesses, which can rise when flooding contaminates water sources and sanitation systems.

📌 What You Need to Know

Muthoni said the Ministry is working with county governments and partners including the Kenya Red Cross Society, National Disaster Operations Centre, National Disaster Management Unit, KEMSA, KEMRI, WHO, UNICEF and other health-sector agencies.

Through the National Health Sector El Niño Task Force and emergency operations structures, the partners will support joint planning, rapid assessments, emergency medical services, referral and evacuation, community outreach, risk communication and relief support.

The preparedness measures include strengthening disease surveillance and early-warning systems, with county teams supported to investigate alerts and deploy rapid-response teams.

The Ministry is also enhancing laboratory capacity and sample-referral networks, while ensuring availability of reagents and rapid diagnostic tests for typhoid, cholera and other priority diseases.

Essential medicines, laboratory supplies, infection-prevention materials, nutrition commodities and emergency kits are being quantified, procured, stockpiled and pre-positioned at regional, county and facility levels.

The plan also prioritises safe water, sanitation and hygiene through water-quality surveillance, household water-treatment supplies, chlorination and disinfection of contaminated sources, as well as mobile water-treatment units and sanitation facilities.

📰 Source: Capital FM Kenya