NAIROBI, Kenya- Unitaid, a UK-funded global health agency, has announced a transformative initiative to address long-standing oxygen shortages in sub-Saharan Africa.
With a Sh2.8 billion investment, the agency aims to triple regional oxygen production through the first-ever program dedicated to manufacturing medical oxygen across East and Southern Africa.
Set to benefit thousands of patients, the initiative will primarily focus on building production facilities in Kenya and Tanzania, which will significantly reduce costs and enhance healthcare capacity across the region.
The newly launched program seeks to increase oxygen production by an impressive 300pc while cutting costs by up to 27pc, making this critical resource far more accessible for African healthcare systems.
By establishing new production plants in Kenya and Tanzania, Unitaid and its partners aim to improve the availability of oxygen for facilities that often struggle to maintain adequate supplies.
According to Unitaid’s Executive Director, Dr. Philippe Duneton, the initiative marks a pivotal shift, turning oxygen from a scarce luxury to a widely available resource, a necessity for patient care across the continent.
The initiative, projected to save as many as 154,000 lives over the next decade, is designed to address critical health needs such as pneumonia, birth complications, and emergency surgeries.
With the backing of partners like the Clinton Health Access Initiative (CHAI) and PATH, the project will support healthcare providers in treating thousands more patients each month.
Unitaid’s program aligns with the Africa CDC’s broader goals to increase local production of essential health products, strengthening the continent’s preparedness for future pandemics and enhancing health security across Africa.
Kenya’s Principal Secretary of Health, Harry Kimtai, underscored the importance of the initiative for universal health coverage, citing uninterrupted oxygen access as essential for improving healthcare nationwide.
The UK’s Deputy Development Director, Eduarda Mendonca-Gray, highlighted the initiative’s critical impact on surgeries, maternal care, and other urgent healthcare needs.
She emphasized the UK’s commitment to supporting Africa’s healthcare infrastructure and pledged continued collaboration to ensure broad access to life-saving resources.
This project, she noted, exemplifies the power of partnerships in achieving sustainable health improvements and meeting global health goals.
