Saturday October 13, 2018
Mandera governor, Ali addressing the public during launching of educational program in the county
Nairobi (HOL) - Mandera County government plans to construct close to $300,000 worth medical training institution in Mandera, a town near Kenya's border with Somalia.
The facility which is intended to train medical students from Kenya, Somalia, and Ethiopia will be the first of its kind to be built in the region since Kenya got independence in 1963.
Speaking to the media, Ali Roba, Mandera Governor said that the county has set aside 100 acres of land for the training college which will be a subsidiary of Kenya Medical Training College (KMTC).
"We have already given out the piece of land where the campus of KMTC will be built. The campus will offer learning opportunities to the students from Mandera County as well as those the neighbouring countries like Somalia and Ethiopia," Mr. Roba said.
According to the governor, the county government has earmarked Ksh 300 million ($2,970,000) for an ultra-modern campus.
“We are upgrading the county referral hospital to a state-of-the-art facility to support the training of students and serve the people of Mandera better,” the governor told the journalists.
Mr. Roba said his government has secured a tranche of the fund intended for the projected.
A man out of Mandera Referral Hospital. the biggest facility in Mandera has been hit with a shortage of staff
"We have already committed Sh150 million ($1,485,000) this financial year and a similar amount in the next financial year for the development of the new campus," the governor affirmed.
The County has been understaffed in the health and education sectors in recent years after hundreds of non-locals fled the region due to insecurity.
Al-Shabaab militants killed a number of non-muslim Kenyans in Mandera town and its environs.
The group stages deadly attacks in Kenyan towns to forces the East African nation to pull its troops from Somalia.
Kenya sent its troops to Somalia in 2011 to fight Al-Shabaab militants following series of abductions and killings inside Kenya which were suspected to have been executed by Al-Shabaab.