Devolved units across the country continue to face significant gaps in maternal and child healthcare, rising gender-based violence, and persistent education inequalities, particularly in underserved regions.

These systemic challenges have left many women, children, and vulnerable communities without sufficient support.

Many communities still struggle with limited services and slow progress in areas such as cancer screening, nutrition and school retention among girls.

The County First Ladies Association (CFLA) introduced a new four-year Strategic Plan on Thursday that seeks to close these long-standing gaps and deepen its impact across all 47 counties.

The CFLA’s 2025–2028 Strategic Plan outlines six core priorities, including health, economic empowerment, inclusive education, ending harmful practices, climate resilience and institutional strengthening.

Speaking during the launch, Alamitu Guyo Jattani, Chairperson of CFLA, described the strategy as a bold, people-driven roadmap building on a decade of impactful county-level programmes.

“This plan will expand access to family planning, immunisation, nutrition and adolescent reproductive health services, while significantly scaling cancer and non-communicable disease screening via strengthened community outreach,” she said. “Our goal is to ensure no woman, youth or child is left behind.”

First Lady Rachel Ruto urged county first ladies to step up their commitment to public service, calling their roles vital in national development, highlighting the collective responsibility that comes with political influence.

“There are moments in a nation’s story when you have to move from your comfort zone to a leadership position and from a leadership position to public responsibility,” she said.

Prof Fred Were, Chief Executive Director of the Kenya Paediatric Research Consortium (KEPRECON), praised the CFLA as a powerful, though often under‑recognised, partner in community health.

“KEPRECON has collaborated with the first ladies on maternal health campaigns, cancer screening, mentorship programmes and efforts to curb violence,” he said. “The First Ladies have quietly emerged as key influencers in the community development space through successful campaigns in maternal health and cancer screening.”

Beyond health, the strategy also seeks to expand access to early childhood and primary education, especially in underserved regions. Key interventions include mentorship for young people, school re-entry support for teenage mothers and renewed efforts to encourage girls’ participation in STEM and vocational courses.

County First Ladies will also extend school milk programmes, kitchen gardens and menstrual hygiene support to improve school attendance and learner wellbeing.

Ending harmful practices is another pillar of the plan. The association commits to intensified work against FGM, child marriage and widow disinheritance. It further promises to step up community engagement, advocate for legal protections and support survivors of domestic violence, rape and femicide.

On economic empowerment, the CFLA will deepen its financial literacy and entrepreneurship programmes, particularly for women, youth and persons with disabilities. It aims to partner with financial institutions to expand access to microcredit and small business financing, thereby helping families to transition from dependency to self-reliance.

Given the growing threat of climate change, the strategy strongly links environmental resilience to community health. CFLA will promote climate-smart agriculture, water conservation, tree growing and climate-health policy dialogues so that communities can better adapt and thrive.

Internally, CFLA is committed to strengthening its governance, financial management, monitoring and evaluation systems, and professional development to enhance delivery consistently across all counties.

“Our strength lies in our unity across all 47 counties and in the partnerships that amplify our work,” said Jattani calling on collaborative action as key to bringing the plan to life. “We invite development partners, civil society, county governments and the private sector to join us in empowering communities and building a thriving Kenya,” she added.