EXPLAINER: How Kenya Plans To Register Foreign Tourists For SHA
Non-Kenyan residents traveling to Kenya for less than a year may soon be forced to register their travel health insurance with the Social Health Authority (SHA), according to a recent development.
Dr. Ouma Oluga and Dr. Belio Kipsang, the Principal Secretaries for Medical Services, Immigration, and Citizen Services, met on Thursday, May 8, to discuss the situation.
In a statement issued following the meeting, the PSs indicated that the debate followed President William Ruto’s directive.
“Principal Secretary for Medical Services, Dr. Ouma Oluga, today paid a courtesy call on the Principal Secretary for Immigration and Citizen Services, Dr. Belio Kipsang, to deliberate on the implementation of the Mandatory Inbound Travel Health Insurance under the Social Health Authority,” read part of the statement.
The two met for a consultative discussion at Dr. Kipsang’s Nairobi office, where they discussed how their separate departments may work together to implement the Presidential mandate.
๐๐ ๐๐ฅ๐ฎ๐ ๐, ๐๐ ๐๐ข๐ฉ๐ฌ๐๐ง๐ ๐ข๐ง ๐๐๐ฅ๐ค๐ฌ ๐ญ๐จ ๐๐๐ญ๐ฎ๐๐ฅ๐ข๐ณ๐ ๐๐๐ง๐๐๐ญ๐จ๐ซ๐ฒ ๐๐ง๐๐จ๐ฎ๐ง๐ ๐๐ซ๐๐ฏ๐๐ฅ ๐๐๐๐ฅ๐ญ๐ก ๐๐ง๐ฌ๐ฎ๐ซ๐๐ง๐๐
— Ministry of Health (@MOH_Kenya) May 8, 2025
The Principal Secretary for Medical Services, Dr. @fnoluga, today paid a courtesy call on the Principal Secretary forโฆ pic.twitter.com/IufyKC9ooq
The order requires non-Kenyans staying in Kenya for less than a year to have proper travel health insurance.
The move comes as the government strives to increase insurance uptake through the Social Health Authority (SHA), which was established in October last year as part of efforts to achieve universal health coverage.
In November, the government authorized the Insurance Regulatory Authority (IRA) to develop a list of qualified insurance companies that may provide obligatory travel health insurance coverage to anyone entering the nation.
In a letter to IRA Chief Executive Officer Godfrey Kiptum, then-Principal Secretary for Medical Services Harry Kimtai stated that the selected firms would provide travel health insurance coverage to all short-term visitors to Kenya.
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“The purpose of this letter, therefore, is to request you to urgently provide us with a list of licensed or approved inbound travel health insurance products or providers for the purposes of undertaking a restricted tendering process,” read part of the letter.
“Providers listed will then be issued with a request for proposal with the appropriate specifications.”
This means that any insurance company seeking to offer the new travel health insurance product must apply to the IRA for registration as a provider.
โIn this regard, the Ministry of Health has commenced the process of establishing the necessary administrative framework for the implementation of the policy and legal requirements,โ Kimtai stated.
EXPLAINER: How Kenya Plans To Register Foreign Tourists For SHA
