Governors, Health Ministry agree on UHC staff verification before transfers
The decision was reached during a high-level consultative meeting on Tuesday that brought together the Ministry of Health, the Council of Governors (CoG), the Social Health Authority (SHA), and the Public Service Commission (PSC).
Governors and the Ministry of Health have agreed that no transfers of Universal Health Coverage (UHC) staff will take place until a joint verification exercise is completed, with the final report expected by September 5, 2025.
The decision was reached during a high-level consultative meeting on Tuesday that brought together the Ministry of Health, the Council of Governors (CoG), the Social Health Authority (SHA), and the Public Service Commission (PSC).
The session, chaired by CoG chair and Wajir Governor Ahmed Abdullahi, focused on issues of health workforce management, implementation of the SHA, and career progression frameworks. Leaders resolved that a Ministry–CoG technical team would finalise and co-sign the staff verification report before any movement of workers.
In addition, a CoG committee made up of the Health, Legal, Finance and Human Resource chairs, alongside Makueni Governor Mutula Kilonzo, will engage the Ministry on modalities for paying UHC staff at Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC) approved rates.
“The Ministry of Health and a Committee consisting of the Chairs of Health, Legal, Finance, Human Resource Committees and the Governor of Makueni County have been formed to engage on modalities of paying the UHC Workers at SRC Rates from September as we conclude on the full transition and absorption to permanent and pensionable terms,” Health CS Aden Duale said.
The meeting also agreed on the rollout of a Governors’ Dashboard to monitor Social Health Insurance Fund (SHIF) claims, with a deadline that all claims be paid by the 14th of every month.
Discussions will further continue on ambulance and evacuation services to align them with devolved functions under the Constitution.
On the issue of career progression, governors criticised the PSC for publishing guidelines without consulting counties, warning that the directives were issued without considering funding implications.
They urged the commission to withdraw the current framework and ensure future guidelines are developed in line with equitable revenue allocations.
“We urge the Commission to desist from approving cadre-based career progression guidelines without factoring the cost of implementation into the equitable share of revenue to the County Governments,” Abdullahi said.
Governors further demanded Sh7.7 billion to cover staff salaries under SRC-approved scales, and Sh9.4 billion to settle gratuity arrears for contract workers before any transfers are done.
They stressed that verification must be jointly validated and a report shared ahead of the transition.
Abdullahi warned against shifting responsibilities to counties without providing adequate resources.
“The Ministry continues to paint a public picture that county governments are derailing the process of absorbing the UHC staff. County Governments cannot be back-peddling with the Ministry over a devolved function,” he said.
He insisted that any review of UHC contracts must involve counties and would only be implemented if the equitable share of revenue is enhanced to cover the extra burden.
“The staff transfers must be preceded by Sh7.7 billion in allocations from the Ministry of Health, based on SRC-approved salary scales,” Abdullahi said.
He added that gratuity payments worth Sh9.4 billion must also be cleared before transfers can proceed. Counties, he noted, are ready to take up verified UHC staff once resources are provided and obligations met.
