President William Ruto has introduced a new Lipa Pole Pole payment scheme for the Social Health Authority (SHA) insurance contributions, targeting Kenyans in the informal sector. This initiative, announced at the 62nd Madaraka Day celebrations in Homa Bay, allows for flexible instalment payments of yearly premiums.

• The new directive will enable families to pay their annual SHA contributions in flexible instalments: monthly, weekly, or even daily.
• This plan is a partnership between the Ministries of Health, Cooperatives, financial and mobile network providers, and the Hustler Fund.
• Last week, the World Bank urged the government to reconsider adjustments to the Universal Health Coverage (UHC), which birthed the Social Health Insurance Fund (SHIF). It projected SHIF would only raise Ksh67 billion annually, falling far short of its Ksh157 billion target.