Faith actors seek to address gaps in teen pregnancy, maternal and child health

In a significant step toward strengthening collaboration between faith communities and national health systems, the Faith to Action Network, alongside key stakeholders from the government have launched the Interfaith National Hub on Family Health and Wellbeing.

The Hub aims to bring together stakeholders to collectively address challenges, including teen pregnancy and high maternal and child mortality rates.

They will also address progress on maternal health, through strengthening the uptake of high-impact interventions and advancing progressive policies for women, children and adolescents.

Speaking on Thursday during the launch of the Hub, Faith to Action Network Chief Executive Officer Peter Munene said this has come at a time when the country is grappling with high rates of adolescent pregnancies.

“The establishment of the Interfaith National Hub represents a significant step towards strengthening coordinated, inclusive, and community-responsive approaches to family health and wellbeing. The Hub provides an opportunity to harness the full potential of faith communities in advancing sustainable health outcomes in Kenya,” said Munene.

 According to the Kenya Demographic and Health Survey 2022, the country’s adolescent birth rate stands at approximately 73 per 1,000, the third highest in the world, with 1 in 5 girls aged 15-19 years pregnant or having already given birth.

New baseline data from Kilifi and Migori presented by Faith to Action Network at the launch showed that, while over 90 per cent of parents support adolescent health discussions, access to comprehensive, adolescent-friendly health information and services remarks limited, with fewer than 1 in 20 boys and 1 in 40 girls meeting the threshold for sexual and reproductive health knowledge.

Despite strong community support for adolescents to receive accurate health information, too many young people still face barriers to access, including distance to services, stigma, and a shortage of truly adolescent-friendly points of care.

Closing these gaps will require closer collaboration between county health systems, schools, and trusted community institutions.

“Faith actors are gatekeepers of their communities. And therefore, we must see faith leaders as an asset, not a liability, and work together to improve access and outcomes” said SUPKEM representative Sheikh Ibrahim Lethome.

Lethome emphasized that Faith-based organisations play an important role in the delivery of care in Sub-Saharan Africa, supplying an estimated 30-70 per cent of health services in rural settings and other underserved areas.

Faith leaders and institutions such as churches and mosques, who are trusted in many Kenyan communities, are therefore uniquely placed to spearhead efforts to strengthen health systems and expand access to care, given their reach and influence.

“The Interfaith National Hub seeks to address the challenges around multisectoral collaboration by putting in place the frameworks and structures required to jointly bring more mothers and children within reach of primary health services," said  Dr Jackline Kisia, Ministry of Health Department of Family Health. 

"by placing faith leaders at the center of community health efforts, we are acknowledging that the most important decisions about care and prevention can often happen beyond clinical settings," she added.

"This collaboration will support stronger alignment of faith engagement within national and county health systems, ensuring faith actors are recognized as critical partners in the implementation of health policies. We can’t do it alone; we must do it together,” Dr Kisia said

The launch concluded with a declaration signed by over 20 faith bodies including Anna Wango’mbe, Principal Secretary, State Department of Gender; Fidellis Ndungu- National Council for Population and Development; Dr Jackline Kisia, Deputy Governor Kilifi County Flora Mbestsa Chubile and Mohammed Fatuma Zainab, Women Representative Migori County.

The declaration affirms the importance of building a Kenya where all families are healthy, resilient, and supported, where women and girls are empowered, and where every individual can access the information and services, they need to thrive.

The collaboration between inter-faith actors, the government and development partners is expected to play a critical role in advancing progress toward Universal Health Coverage a key pillar of Kenya’s social and economic development blueprint by shaping social norms, attitudes and beliefs toward the health system and supporting access to health services.