Kenya's path to WHO Maturity Level 3 is milestone for health and trust

By Robert Mutasi

The Government of Kenya has confirmed its mission to ensure that the National Quality Control Laboratory reaches the whole 3 standards.

This is a very important step towards strengthening the health system in Kenya in accordance with international standards, ensuring the safety, effectiveness and quality of medical products and technologies used by the population.

Mary Muthoni, Secretary-General for Public Health and Professional Standards, visited NQCL to inspect facilities below and talk about the challenges and opportunities ahead.

He highly appreciated the important work done by NQCL in the field of Public Health.

"Reaching the third level of maturity will not only increase the standards of our healthcare products, but will also strengthen public confidence in the healthcare sector," Mutoni said, highlighting the important relationship between quality control and public confidence in healthcare systems.

Achieving Level 3 maturity status means not only achieving high regulatory standards, but also keeping Kenya as a regional leader in controlling medical products.

This certification will confirm that Kenya's regulatory systems for medicine, vaccines and medical technologies meet international standards.

This, in turn, will increase the country's ability to enter international markets and open up opportunities for domestic manufacturers to export their products to other countries around the world.

This has always been an important step towards the country's broader efforts to achieve global health coverage, which remains the basis of Public Health Policy.

Since NQCL will meet these international standards, Kenya will have better facilities to tackle the growing problem of counterfeiting and non-standard medical products, which continue to pose a significant risk to public health.

Although the method of Maturity Level 3 is fraught with certain difficulties ,lack of resources, gaps in infrastructure and an acute shortage of competent personnel ,one can feel how seriously the state is dealing with these issues in order to provide NQCL with modern technologies, adequate funding and training.

This would give it the capacity it needs to meet the WHO requirements. This will greatly contribute to ensuring that all Kenyans have access to safe, effective and high-quality medical products.

It will also strengthen the country's international position, strengthen regional cooperation and strengthen Kenya's long-term health systems.

Government investment in nqcl is not just investment in healthcare infrastructure; it is investment in Citizens ' Trust, which is an important factor driving progress towards universal health coverage and universal health improvement.