Award-Winning Young Health Programme expands to 18 new communities in Kenya

Today, Plan International Kenya and AstraZeneca are pleased to announce the five-year renewal of the Young Health Programme Kenya, a global community investment initiative from AstraZeneca, focusing on young people and prevention of the most common non-communicable diseases (NCDs): cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabetes and chronic respiratory diseases.

In Kenya, young people between 10 and 24 account for over 33% of the total population [1], providing the country with a considerable socio-economic development opportunity. The period of adolescence is pivotal in reducing NCDs and maximizing health across all stages of life.

“We are very excited to build on five years of successful implementation in Kenya and expand our reach to 18 new areas, the remaining villages in Kibera and into the new area of Mathare,” says Kate Maina-Vorley, Country Director, Plan International Kenya. “Having successfully worked closely with the Nairobi County and National Government to support policies and guidelines on NCD prevention, and reached over 82,000 young people and 267,000 members of the wider community over the past five years, we are looking forward to continuing this vital work focusing on NCD prevention. Our recent external evaluation illustrated incredible results, including for instance that the number of young people using tobacco declined more than 40%, from 47.2% at baseline to 5.9% at the final evaluation. Combining our programme to empower young people to make healthier life choices, with the present significant political will to address the challenge, we hope to continue to have a huge impact on long-term health outcomes.”

The Young Health Programme addresses the primary NCD risk factors of tobacco use, harmful use of alcohol, physical inactivity, unhealthy diet and air pollution, as well as supporting the broader health and well-being of young people.

According to the World Health Organisation country profile of 2018, NCDs in Kenya are estimated to account for 27% of total deaths and 13% of premature deaths, with cardiovascular diseases and cancers being the leading cause of death, accounting for 8% and 10% respectively [2]. The Kenya 2015 STEPS survey revealed that 94% of Kenyans aged 18-69 are consuming less than the WHO-recommended 5 servings of fruits and vegetables per day [3], an alarming statistic that may compromise their current and future health.

Nancy, a 23 year old peer educator from Kibera said, “The programme built my capacity in different ways. At an individual level, I have become knowledgeable about the risk that can lead to NCDs and have learnt so much about NCDs compared to before joining the programme. At the community level, I have raised awareness about NCD prevention among young people. Most of them have taken it positively and as a result, have reduced the practices, especially those who were harmfully using alcohol.”

The Young Health Programme Kenya is a five-year programme that aims to contribute to the improved health and wellbeing of young people between 10-24 years of age in five villages in Kibera that were not reached through the 2016-2020 programme, and all thirteen villages in Mathare. Specifically, it aims to ensure that young people in Nairobi have increased knowledge about risk factors and NCD prevention, which gives them greater capacity to make informed decisions about their health, in the context of improved health services, an enabling support system and policy environment.

The Young Health Programme Kenya hopes to directly reach more than 88,000 young people with health information and NCD prevention programming. Indirectly, it is expected to reach an additional 400,000 young people and 196,000 members of the wider community through campaigns, events and awareness raising activities.

The impact this can have shines through in the achievements of the programme to date and we are delighted to continue our commitment to adolescent health in Kenya

Globally, the AstraZeneca Young Health Programme has reached more than 5 million young people in 30 countries since it was launched in 2010.

“Since the Young Health Programme launched in Kenya in 2016, I have seen the peer educators in action, and have been inspired by their desire to become champions for other youth in their communities to live healthier lives. The impact this can have shines through in the achievements of the programme to date and we are delighted to continue our commitment to adolescent health in Kenya,” said Dr Kennedy Njau, Government Affairs Director, Sub Saharan Africa, AstraZeneca.