The nationwide nurses’ strike has come to an end after 41 days following an agreement between the Kenya National Union of Nurses and Midwives (KNUNM) and the Council of Governors.
KNUNM Secretary General Seth Panyako announced the end of the strike on Wednesday, September 9, shortly after a day-long closed-door meeting with governors.
Panyako said the strike, which started on July 29, had been called off with immediate effect.
“By the powers conferred to me by the Constitution of the Kenya National Union of Nurses and the Constitution of Kenya, I hereby declare that the strike that commenced on the 29th of July 2026 is hereby called off,” Panyako stated.
He directed nurses who had been on strike to return to their stations within 24 hours to allow normal operations to resume in public hospitals.
“I urge the electoral members to resume duty immediately and in any case not later than 24 hours from now,” he added.
The agreement brings an end to a prolonged labour dispute that had affected healthcare services in public hospitals across the country.
The nurses had been pushing for better pay and allowances, among other concerns, during the strike.
In recent days, the union had intensified pressure on the Council of Governors, with nurses camping at the CoG offices and promising to remain there until their concerns were addressed.
The breakthrough came after governors presented a new offer to the nurses.
Council of Governors chair Ahmed Abdullahi said on Tuesday that the two sides had reached a proposed deal that would increase nurses’ risk and uniform allowances.
Under the offer, the risk allowance would be increased by Ksh8,000 while the uniform allowance would rise by Ksh5,000, translating to a combined increase of Ksh13,000.
“Through the effort of our health committee, I can report that we finally have a deal if they do not change their mind until when the deal is signed,” Abdullahi said during a meeting at State House.
He said the agreement was reached as both sides sought to end the disruption of health services that had lasted for several weeks.
The nurses’ strike had also raised concerns among other health workers, with doctors warning that they could join the industrial action if the dispute was not resolved.
The Kenya Medical Practitioners, Pharmacists and Dentists Union (KMPDU) had issued a seven-day notice to the government, demanding a resolution to the nurses’ dispute.
The doctors’ union said the prolonged absence of nurses had increased the workload for doctors and other health workers in public facilities.
With the nurses now expected back at work, attention will shift to implementation of the agreement and restoring normal services in hospitals that had been affected by the strike.
