The Safaricom Foundation has set aside Kshs 50 million to go towards the rehabilitation of the Kenyatta National Hospital’s New Born Unit and purchase of additional neo-natal incubators, new-born ICU beds and resuscitation equipment. This initiative is part of the Kenya@50 Legacy projects.
The Kenyatta National Hospital Neo Natal Unit currently has 15 incubators and 4 ICU beds. Five babies are born either preterm or sick with low birth weight at KNH every day and many others transferred from other hospitals within region. Subsequently, about 100 babies are admitted in the unit on any given day. Inadequate resources are therefore largely to blame for the 40% mortality rate registered in the unit.
Speaking when making the handover Safaricom CEO, Bob Collymore said, “With this donation, we continue to highlight our on-going and long standing commitment towards helping raise a healthy generation that will contribute meaningfully to Kenya’s development.”
The KNH Neo-Natal Unit was started in 1980 as a small unit to meet the needs of two level two health facilities in Nairobi, but has been constrained by the growing population that has seen more babies born each year.
The Safaricom Foundation has so far committed a total of Kshs 100 million to the Kenya@50 Legacy Projects. Last week the Foundation announced that it is embarking on a KES 50 million project to purchase new beds, office furniture laundry equipment and renovate wards at the Mathari Hospital.
The Safaricom Foundation has since its inception in 2003 disbursed Kshs.1.8 Billion towards CSR projects in the country.
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