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Advocacy with the Ministry of Health Faith-based health facilities provide a substantial portion of health care services in Kenya, particularly in rural, remote and underserved areas. CHAK is therefore a major stakeholder in the health sector, complementing Government efforts to provide health services to Kenyans. CHAK engages in proactive advocacy with the Ministry of Health for recognition, involvement in health policy development and allocation of resources and training opportunities. CHAK represents its members in several health policy and planning committees of the health sector.
To strengthen its advocacy role, CHAK maintains a database of its member health units and the services they provide. The organisation conducts operational research and documentation to build an evidence base to support advocacy and collaborates with other Faith Based Organisations such as Kenya Episcopal Conference (KEC) and SUPKEM in its advocacy efforts.
Partnership framework with the Ministry of Health (MOH-FBHS-TWG) Faith based health services providers CHAK, KEC, MEDS and SUPKEM have a structured forum for regular engagement with the Government named Ministry of Health-Faith Based Health Services-Technical Working Group (MOH-FBHS-TWG). The TWG is chaired by MOH and CHAK serves as its Secretariat. The TWG is mandated to provide a structured forum for regular engagement, conduct a situational analysis study of Faith Based Health Services in Kenya and develop a Partnership Policy Framework between FBHS and MOH guided by the SWAps spirit.
In December 2007, CHAK facilitated study tours by teams comprising of Faith Based Organisations, Ministry of Health and HENNET to gather lessons and best practices in Private Public Partnerships. The lessons learned will inform the process of developing a Public Private Partnership policy for Kenya.
Representation in the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) board The NHIF Act of 1998 provides for CHAK membership to the NHIF Board of Directors to represent Faith Based Organisations. This provides an avenue for articulating issues of concern to Faith Based Health Service Providers and receiving feedback on their partnership with NHIF. The FBO representative to the NHIF board consults with CHAK and KEC-Catholic Health Commission for up to date information on issues that require advocacy. Relevant feedback is provided from the board meetings.
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