More than 54,000 inmates across Kenya’s prisons have been registered under the Social Health Authority (SHA), Correctional Services Principal Secretary Salome Muhia has revealed. The number is rapidly approaching 60,000 as the government intensifies efforts to ensure every Kenyan, including those incarcerated, has access to quality healthcare.
Speaking during the national monthly Tree Planting Greening Kenya initiative at Machakos GK Prison, PS Muhia emphasized that SHA registration for inmates began just two months ago and has already seen significant progress. “The president has pronounced that all of us must register with SHA. Inmates are part of our society and deserve access to healthcare, which is a constitutional right under Article 43,” she stated.
PS Muhia said more than 24 million Kenyans have been registered with SHA, averaging over 50,000 people daily. She confirmed that all prison officers have already been registered under SHA, following a presidential directive. Inmates, she said, will have their premiums covered by the National Treasury, ensuring that no one is left behind in the quest for universal health coverage.
To further support inmates’ reintegration into society, the PS disclosed plans to issue national identification cards to all inmates. This will enable them to seek employment or start businesses upon release. Additionally, the government is preparing to digitalize prison operations as part of wider policy reforms aligned with the Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda.
During the event, Muhia also led multi-agency teams in planting trees at the Machakos Male and Female Prisons and the Machakos Probation Office. She said the Tree Planting Greening Kenya initiative is part of the government’s goal to plant 15 billion trees by 2032. Correctional facilities have already contributed over 7.5 million trees.
Highlighting the importance of rehabilitation, Muhia noted that vocational training programs in prisons are providing inmates with vital life skills. She also announced that 4,950 inmates had recently been released under presidential amnesty, with support from community probation programs to ease their transition back into society.
“This is how we transform lives—through healthcare, skills development, and environmental stewardship,” Muhia concluded.
