Homa Bay Residents Say Nyandiwa Hospital Has Never Served Them Despite Getting SHA Millions
- Nearly KSh20 million was reportedly wired to Nyandiwa Health Centre, which residents say has remained non-operational for a decade
- The Social Health Authority records show payments and a licensed hospital status, despite no staff, patients, or services being present
- Locals criticised the funding as wasteful, urging the government to operationalise the facility to provide healthcare and create jobs
- Residents continue trekking long distances for medical care, highlighting the financial and physical strain caused by the hospital’s inactivity
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Didacus Malowa, a journalist at TUKO.co.ke, brings over three years of experience covering politics and current affairs in Kenya.
Homa Bay - Reports that nearly KSh20 million was wired to Nyandiwa Health Centre despite the facility being non-operational have sparked outrage and confusion.
Source: UGC
Locals have insisted that the hospital has never opened its doors, even as the Social Health Authority (SHA) and the Ministry of Health give mixed stands over whether the payments were legitimate or a clerical error.
On the ground, Nyandiwa Health Centre tells a different story of a structure that stands behind a barbed wire fence and its gate is locked.
Freshly cut grass surrounds the L-shaped yellow building with a blue iron sheet roof, but there are no signs of medical staff or patients. For a decade, residents say, this has been the reality.
Yet SHA’s official disbursement schedule for August 2025 shows Nyandiwa Dispensary received KSh19,998,720 in claims.
The facility was also allocated KSh10,080 in an earlier release and records list it as a licensed Level Two hospital under permit GK-013891, with an admission capacity of nine.
For villagers in West Kamagak Ward, these figures are incomprehensible, revealing that the health centre has never functioned.
"That is a surprise, breaking news to me. That is so consternating. How is it working? How is it funded? For what? When we talk about fund, we don't expect to come and see the cash, we expect to see the hospital working. So this is a waste project," said a resident.
Why are Nyandiwa residents disappointed?
Others, such as Emily Dan, a local resident, echo the frustration, urging the government to operationalise the hospital instead of pouring money into empty claims.
"I now want to tell the government to open this hospital so that it starts operating. Even we can benefit from it since it is nearby. Let us work there; we can even do simple tasks like mopping. But if the government wastes money and the hospital is not functioning, then it is of no use," she stated.
The facility was built nearly ten years ago with hopes of easing access to care and creating employment.
Source: Twitter
Instead, residents still trek four kilometres to Rachuonyo Sub-County Hospital for services, enduring physical and financial strain.
"We'll have a treatment here because it is near us, we'll not walk this long distance, even at night we'll just come when you have a problem instead of hiring a vehicle, hiring a boda boda to take you to the hostel because where the hostel is you cannot walk on foot," Rosalinda Odawa explained.
Hellen Anyango, who saw the hospital being built, said the unfulfilled promises weigh heavily on most of the locals.
"I saw the hospital being built, and when it was completed, I was very happy. I had hopes for our children who have studied, knowing they would be able to get jobs there. Since it was built, we have seen nothing. We do not see any staff, and the young people are still unemployed. This is the very place where they could have found work, yet it has still not happened," she lamented.
How did SHA explain funds sent to Homa Bay facility
As reported, SHA CEO Dr Mercy Mwangangi has rejected claims that money went to a non-existent institution.
In a statement, she insisted Nyandiwa Dispensary, established in the 1970s, was upgraded to a Level Four hospital.
According to her, the structure photographed by journalists was an abandoned building, not the facility receiving payments, which contradicts both residents and county officials.
Source: TUKO.co.ke
