Kenya Moves to Strengthen Pharmacy Provision of Contraceptives
Kenya Moves to Strengthen Pharmacy Provision of Contraceptives
By Stella Ranji
NAIROBI, Kenya
Efforts to expand access to family planning and reproductive health services in Kenya are receiving a boost as stakeholders seek to strengthen the role of private retail pharmacies in providing contraceptives.
The initiative, under the Strengthening Pharmacy Provision of Contraceptives in Kenya (MarketTest) Project, is highlighting the potential of pharmacies to increase access to a wider range of family planning methods, including self-care options such as subcutaneous depot medroxyprogesterone acetate (DMPA-SC), a self-injectable contraceptive.
Private retail pharmacies already serve as an important first point of care for an estimated 13.2 per cent of Kenyans, with their convenience, accessibility and extended operating hours making them an attractive option for people seeking health services.
The MarketTest Project, implemented in partnership with the Ministry of Health and other stakeholders, has spent five years generating evidence, testing innovations and exploring ways to use the pharmacy channel to improve contraceptive access and method choice for women.
The project's learning and exit summit, themed “Beyond Contraceptive Access: The Future of Pharmacies in Reproductive Health,” brings together government officials, donors, development partners, pharmaceutical professionals, manufacturers, wholesalers and civil society organisations to examine the future of pharmacy-led primary healthcare.
Organisers say the summit provides an opportunity to share lessons from five years of implementation while identifying sustainable and scalable approaches for expanding reproductive health services through pharmacies.
The initiative has worked closely with the Pharmaceutical Society of Kenya and the Kenya Pharmaceutical Association, alongside other partners, to strengthen pharmacy capacity and explore how retail pharmacies can contribute more effectively to Kenya's health system.
Stakeholders participating in the summit include representatives from the Ministry of Health, the Division of Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn, Child and Adolescent Health (DRMNCH), the Division of Health Products and Technologies (DHPT), the Pharmacy and Poisons Board (PPB), the Kenya Medical Research Institute (KEMRI), donors, non-governmental organisations and private-sector actors.
As Kenya continues to pursue universal health coverage and improved access to reproductive health services, stakeholders say pharmacies could play an increasingly important role in bringing convenient, discreet and affordable contraceptive services closer to communities.
The lessons emerging from the MarketTest Project are expected to help shape future policies and programmes aimed at integrating pharmacies more effectively into primary healthcare and ensuring women have greater choice in accessing contraception.
With five years of evidence and innovation behind the initiative, the summit marks both an end and a new beginning — providing an opportunity to translate lessons learned into sustainable approaches that can expand reproductive health access across Kenya.
