By Lilian Mukoche
Mombasa County, Kenya: Mombasa County has been in the limelight for good reasons since the first case of COVID -19 reported in Kenya. The county Government under the leadership of Governor Hassan Joho has kept Kenyans talking and admiring how the Governor is leading in the battle against COVID-19.
Covid-19 Spraying Booths, huge water tanks with attached handwashing taps as well as Covid-19 sample taking booths spotted in almost every corner of Mombasa county are just but a few indicators that the county is heavily fighting the pandemic within its midst.
The ever-vibrant Jomo Kenyatta Public beach and the newly renovated Mama Ngina Water Front are currently ghosted recreational areas, following the directives to keep off the public places to curb the spread of the virus which knows no boundaries.
Mombasa governor Ali Hassan Joho stole the show among all the 47 governors in the country in curbing the spread of the virus by equipping all the public medical facilities within the county with all necessary equipment.
“There is a lot of goodwill from friends locally and internationally to help us fight this virus. This fight requires collective efforts and as a county, we continue to do all that we can to help our people and support implement the guidelines issued by the national government.” The governor says while receiving ten ventilators from well-wishers.
The current flattening curve on the numbers of those being reported to have contacted the virus is a clear indication that the effort being put in the war against Covid-19 within the county is bearing fruits.
With more than 450 Intensive Care Units beds for the Covid-19 patients, Mombasa county has maintained the top position in the Country among the 47 counties in terms of its preparedness in the fight against the killer virus.
Attention has been prioritized in key areas and critical facilities including Kongowea the biggest market in the county, as well as Likoni Ferry Channel where thousands of commuters cross on a daily basis to and from Mombasa Island to Likoni mainland and vice versa.
In these places, the Covid-19 disinfecting booths have been positioned in such a way that the all the market-goers and ferry commuters pass through as they get disinfected.
Issuance of face masks, distribution of food donations, and supply of water to the less fortunate are also some of the projects that have seen the Mombasa residents give a pat on the back of the county leadership led by Governor Hassan Joho.
The County’s Chief Officer Community Public Health Aisha Abubakar has attributed the decrease in the numbers of those reported to have contracted the virus to the efforts being put in place by the county to combat its spread.
“Health workers and Community Health Volunteers are important in terms of helping the County government fight the pandemic which continues to claim lives worldwide.” She says they have been at the forefront in sensitizing the community on government guidelines like washing hands and sanitizing after undergoing training which equipped them with the knowledge about covid-19.
Being one of the counties put under secession, Mombasa managed to control the cases coming outside the country and had to fight the virus being spread from within something many believe was partially achieved.
The county has shifted from the mass testing to target testing where the most vulnerable are ones currently being tested amongst them the frontline workers including health workers as well as the long-distance truck drivers to travel across the borders.
With borders now, the open emphasis is being put on locals to take precautions now that guests from various places are visiting the coastal and tourists’ city of Mombasa.
A covid 19 examination at Miritini in Jomvu Mombasa county fortesting long distance drivers.
The County scored highly especially in health facility preparedness (92%), provision of health services (73%) as well as in areas of food and nutrition (72%). This is according to an Audit Findings Report for the covid-19 funds, which was carried out in September 2020 by Haki Africa with support from Amkeni Wakenya and the UNDP.
The audit assessed levels of service provision as opposed to doing the financial probity of the utilized funds an action that was necessitated due to the public outcry on the use of Covid-19 funds nationally and in counties.
On his Facebook page, Mombasa Governor attributes the results achieved mainly to the collaborative and collective efforts by all those involved in the running of coherent and coordinated programs that were crucial in managing the devastating effects of the covid-19 pandemic.
The performance after the audit made Kenyans on social media happy. This was seen through the comments made online especially on Facebook. Just to sample a few:
“So far you are the best performing governor…if given another chance you can turn Mombasa to another Dubai in Africa…I can see Dubai in Mombasa through you and people who can embrace your ideology”. Says James Nguta Mwaizinga.
Peninah Nyawira says “Great; thanks for being transparent on covid-19 funds that’s what we call visionary leadership; mola akubariki-God bless you.”
This work was produced as a result of a grant provided by the Africa- China Reporting Project at the Journalism Department of the University of the Witwatersrand. The opinions expressed and conclusions drawn are the author’s own and do not represent those at the Project.
