Kenya has announced a new set of national actions to improve the survival of premature babies, marking World Prematurity Day on 17 November at the Murang’a County Referral Hospital with a strong message: no baby should die from a preventable cause.
The commemoration brought together parents who have walked the difficult journey of raising preterm infants, health workers who care for them daily, and county leaders committed to strengthening newborn services.
The event was officiated by Murang’a Governor Dr. Irungu Kang’ata and Dr. Nazila Ganatra, the Ministry of Health’s Director of Health Products and Technologies, who represented the Cabinet Secretary for Health.
Speaking at the event, Dr. Ganatra did not shy away from the reality facing families. Prematurity, she said, is still among the leading causes of newborn deaths in Kenya yet many of these losses are avoidable when the right care is available at the right time.
“Most of these deaths are preventable,” she said, emphasising that both community-level care and hospital readiness determine whether a premature baby survives the first crucial days.
To change this, Dr. Ganatra announced the completion of the National Every Woman Every Newborn (EWENE) Acceleration Plan Kenya’s new roadmap for improving newborn care countrywide. She also unveiled three national enablers to drive the reforms:
Kenya Newborn Investment Case, which outlines the resources needed to strengthen newborn services,
National Mentorship Package for Newborn Care, aimed at equipping frontline workers with hands-on skills, National Norms and Standards for Newborn Care, providing counties with clear guidance on quality.
Murang’a County was highlighted as a county where progress is already taking shape. Dr. Ganatra praised Governor Kang’ata’s administration for investing in newborn health from ensuring a steady supply of essential medicines, expanding Kangaroo Mother Care, and strengthening community health units, to upgrading critical infrastructure such as the Newborn Unit and the Biomedical Workshop.
She noted that these efforts closely align with the Government’s broader Universal Health Coverage (UHC) reforms, which focus on a skilled and motivated health workforce, fully functional digital health systems, reliable access to commodities and financial protection through the Social Health Authority (SHA).
Dr. Ganatra encouraged families to enrol under SHA so that mothers and newborns especially those requiring specialised care are protected from financial hardship.
As the event wrapped up, her message remained clear and urgent: Kenya must work together to ensure every premature baby has a fighting chance.
“We owe it to our mothers, to our families, and to our future,” she said. “With stronger county action, committed partners and sustained accountability, every preterm baby in Kenya can survive and thrive.”
