In a significant move to bolster health policy and practice, the Kenyan National Centre (NC) of the African Health Observatory Platform (AHOP) convened a policy dialogue to discuss the role of evidence in decision-making during the COVID-19 pandemic. The dialogue took place on 15 February 2023 during the 13th KEMRI-Wellcome Trust Annual Scientific and Health Conference in Nairobi, Kenya.
The policy dialogue saw participation from a diverse group of health sector stakeholders, including representatives from the National Ministry of Health (MOH), County Departments of Health (CDOH), the Council of Governors (COG), international partners such as the WHO Kenya Country Office and the African Institute for Development Policy (AFIDEP), and research institutions such as the KEMRI-Wellcome Trust Research Programme.
The dialogue focused on several critical areas, including the continued quality of service delivery during the pandemic, the well-being and productivity of the health workforce, and the innovation, distribution, and equity of health products and technology. Participants deliberated on the enablers and impediments of evidence use in decision-making, highlighting the importance of accessible and contextualized evidence. The discussions underscored the need for better involvement of county governments in decision-making processes and the importance of collaboration between researchers and policymakers.
The dialogue concluded with several key outcomes. It was noted that existing evidence-informed policies and the availability of contextualized evidence played a significant role in guiding decisions during the pandemic. However, challenges such as the top-down approach to decision-making and the lack of capacity at the county level to generate contextualized evidence were identified as impediments.
To address these challenges, the dialogue proposed several future actions, including the development of a nationwide capacity for evidence synthesis and systematic reviews, enhancing local capacity to produce personal protective equipment, and maintaining structures established during the pandemic for future preparedness. Additionally, the development of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the Ministry of Health and research institutions was recommended to formalize relationships and facilitate evidence generation and use.
AHOP is a regional partnership to promote evidence-informed policy-making. The Platform is hosted by the World Health Organization’s Regional Office for Africa (WHO AFRO) and leverages existing national and regional collaborations to form a network of National Centres across the region, including in Kenya. AHOP policy dialogues focus on creating an environment for exchange of information, experience and recommendations among decision-makers, practitioners and researchers, and facilitate intervention-oriented discussions on targeted policy opportunities.
