MOMBASA, Kenya – Mombasa County will recruit 573 nurses on contract in a move aimed at maintaining healthcare services as the nationwide nurses’ strike enters its third day, Governor Abdulswamad Shariff Nassir has announced.
The governor said the County Public Service Board had been directed to immediately begin the recruitment process to ensure public hospitals continue operating despite the industrial action called by the Kenya National Union of Nurses and Midwives (KNUNM).
“We respect the constitutional right of nurses to strike, but we also have a duty to protect the lives of patients who depend on our public health facilities,” Nassir said on Friday.
He insisted that no patient should be denied treatment or discharged from hospital because of the ongoing strike, saying the county government would take all necessary measures to keep essential services running.
The nationwide strike began on Wednesday after the expiry of a seven-day notice issued by KNUNM. The union is demanding implementation of several labour agreements, including issues surrounding the proposed 2025–2029 Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA).
Nassir, who chairs the Council of Governors’ Health Committee, questioned the timing of the strike, arguing that negotiations on the centralised CBA are still ongoing between the relevant parties.
He disclosed that the county government intends to seek the court’s interpretation on the legality of the industrial action.
“Should the court determine that the strike is unlawful and direct nurses to resume work, they remain our employees and will be welcomed back. If the ruling is otherwise, we shall respond accordingly,” he said.
The governor emphasized that the emergency recruitment is a temporary intervention designed to cushion public hospitals while efforts to resolve the dispute continue.
According to Nassir, Mombasa has a large pool of qualified but unemployed nurses capable of filling the temporary positions.
“Our immediate concern is safeguarding healthcare services. Health should never become a casualty of labour disputes because patients have no alternative when they walk into our hospitals,” he said.
County officials said the recruitment exercise would be undertaken by the Mombasa County Public Service Board without delay.
The nurses’ strike has disrupted healthcare services in several counties, forcing devolved governments to adopt different contingency measures as negotiations between the union and government continue.
While the Council of Governors has maintained that dialogue remains the preferred path to resolving the dispute, county administrations insist essential medical services must continue as discussions progress.
