Kenya to Sanction Civil Servants Who Refuse Vaccination

Kenya is planning to enforce all government workers to receive at least one dose of Covid-19 vaccine before August 23 or face disciplinary action.

The head of Kenya’s public service, Joseph Kinyua in a statement to senior state officials stated that the action of some staff members opting not to get inoculated so they can continue working from home is hurting service delivery.

“Henceforth, Kenyan state workers who haven’t complied will be treated as discipline cases and appropriate action taken against them,” Kinyua stated.

Reacting to this, secretary-general of the Kenya Union of Civil Servants, Tom Odege opposed the move and wondered why civil servants were the only ones being punished for a vaccination that is voluntary. He believes the government should instead encourage civil servants to get the jab.

Some Governments and private establishments around the world are increasingly starting to use proof of vaccination as a means to reopen economies and borders more than 18 months after the pandemic broke out.

Kenya government has ordered 13 million single-dose of Johnson & Johnson vaccines, which are expected to start arriving in August. Only 2.6% of Kenyan adults are fully inoculated, primarily with the two-shot AstraZeneca Plc vaccine, according to the Ministry of Health.

Health authorities have so far recorded 213,756 infections and 4,211 deaths. President Uhuru Kenyatta vowed to ensure about 10 million people are inoculated by the end of December, and the entire adult population next year.