Nurses from Kisumu, Siaya, Homa Bay and Migori counties take part dancing, chanting and singing during a joint procession in Kisumu on August 27, 2026, in solidarity with the ongoing nurses’ strike.
For Job Odhiambo, a resident of Kisumu, a headache his six-year-old son woke up with turned into a hard lesson in what it means when nurses are away from public wards. With no money for a private hospital, he walked to a pharmacy instead.
"My child had a headache, so I went to a nearby pharmacy and bought him medicine. He is now okay. I know it is not a good idea to guess symptoms and buy medicine over the counter, but I did not have enough money to afford treatment at a private facility," he said.
His is one of many households across Kisumu turning to self-medication and guesswork as the nationwide nurses' strike drags into another week, with beds lying empty at Kisumu County Referral Hospital and families forced to choose between waiting for services to resume and finding whatever care they can afford.
The Kenya National Union of Nurses and Midwives (KNUNM) has declared that the strike will continue indefinitely, after talks with the Council of Governors (CoG) stalled over full implementation of the long-pending 2017 Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA).
Speaking at a press briefing, KNUNM Secretary-General Seth Panyako said minor progress had been made on administrative grievances, but the union remained far from a resolution on the central financial dispute. He confirmed that county governments had committed to issuing permanent and pensionable appointment letters across all 47 counties within the week, and that some progress had been registered on career progression guidelines. However, no formal deal has been signed with the CoG, with the CBA remaining the main sticking point.
"The main elephant in the house is the issue of the Collective Bargaining Agreement, and this is where we are drawing our lines very clearly. The chair of the Council of Governors is making political pronouncements, saying that the deal is too expensive to be implemented. The money they are talking about is not a lot as far as we are concerned," Panyako said.
Kenya National Union of Nurses Secretary-General Seth Panyako.
The union also criticised the Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC) for delaying the approvals needed to move the deal forward, demanding that it issue a letter of no objection to allow the 2017 CBA to be registered at the Employment and Labour Relations Court (ELRC).
To ramp up pressure, KNUNM has announced a demonstration in Nairobi on Thursday, September 3, with members planning to camp outside the SRC offices for the day.
"On Thursday, we will be camping at the SRC offices for the whole day. We will get tea at the SRC, have lunch at the SRC, and have dinner at the SRC until they respect the nurses of this country," Panyako said.
The union has also threatened a total shutdown of health facilities in Wajir County, after Governor Ahmed Abdullahi, who chairs the CoG Health Committee, questioned the legitimacy of the 2017 CBA during Monday's Intergovernmental Budget and Economic Council (IBEC) meeting. Abdullahi argued the agreement was negotiated and signed under political duress ahead of the 2017 General Election and was never properly operationalised, and that implementing its financial demands in full would be unsustainable for county treasuries, given that budgets for the current financial year are already finalised and the SRC has advised against wage increases beyond public sector sustainability guidelines.
"Implementing that deal as demanded today is financially unsustainable for county governments. County budgets for the current financial year are already finalised, and we cannot act outside the framework and guidance provided by the Salaries and Remuneration Commission," he said.
Abdullahi urged nurses to call off the strike and return to work, noting that the Employment and Labour Relations Court had already declared the industrial action illegal. He warned that county public service boards would have no option but to institute disciplinary procedures against nurses who failed to report to their stations.
"The court declared this strike illegal, and we urge our nurses to respect the rule of law and return to work as dialogue continues. If nurses refuse to report to their stations, individual County Public Service Boards will have no choice but to initiate disciplinary procedures according to the law," he said, adding: "We have offered a tentative deal, but we must be realistic. What we need is a joint approach where both the Council of Governors and the union sit together with the SRC to find a sustainable, phased solution that does not paralyse county operations."
Panyako also condemned an incident in Kisii County, where he said peaceful nurse demonstrators were harassed and dispersed by hired goons, with police allegedly looking on, during a local petition launch. He described the attack as barbaric and called on the Inspector General of Police to investigate the Kisii police leadership over its failure to protect striking workers.
The nurses were assaulted within the grounds of Kisii Teaching and Referral Hospital on Tuesday, as they prepared to stage a peaceful demonstration and present a petition to the county government, an incident their union leaders have condemned as deeply unfortunate and alarming.
"Police in Kisii have been compromised. We provided a clear notice to the police that we would be having peaceful demonstrations. The police officers came, but instead of offering protection, they directed the nurses to leave, stating that if they did not comply, those hired goons would be unleashed on them," Panyako said.
"We want to condemn this in the strongest terms possible. We are asking the police in Kisii why they allowed goons to attack peaceful nurses, as if they do not also fall sick. We will not be kind to those who are not kind to us. We are nurses; they may have guns and weapons, but we can also be lethal. I am asking the Inspector General of Police to act against the OCS of Kisii, because we cannot have a police officer, instead of maintaining law and order, supervising goons. Goonism in this country must come to an end," he added.
Nurses who spoke on condition of anonymity said about 40 men armed with jembe sticks descended on them as they prepared for the protest. "Some of my colleagues are nursing injuries after we were attacked by unknown persons," one nurse said.
In Homa Bay, nurses have vowed to defy the CoG's call to return to work while negotiations continue. Emmadick Okeyo, executive secretary of the KNUNM Homa Bay branch, said staying away from work was the union's minimum position.
"We will not return to work unless our grievances are addressed. Unless you sign the CBA and we get a letter of no objection from the Salaries and Remuneration Commission, we will not return to work. This applies to the failure to implement the return-to-work agreement and other grievances," Okeyo said.
The nurses want the CBA signed into law, arguing it guarantees career progression guidelines and allowances, among other benefits. They are also demanding permanent and pensionable contracts for colleagues recruited under the Universal Health Coverage (UHC) programme during former President Uhuru Kenyatta's tenure, who remain on temporary terms, as well as full implementation of the 2017 Return-to-Work Agreement signed between the union and the CoG.
Branch chairman Enock Ocharo told the council to stop threatening nurses. "Let the CoG focus on addressing our grievances. The threats they are issuing will not have any impact," he said.
Back in Kisumu, beds stand empty at the county referral hospital; some residents have sought treatment elsewhere, while others, like Odhiambo, have opted to manage ailments with over-the-counter medicine. For families already struggling to make ends meet, the strike has left many wondering how much longer it will take before both sides settle the standoff.
Until the 2017 CBA is fully recognised and registered, KNUNM says public health facilities nationwide will remain without nursing services.
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By Mercy Chelangat, Ruth Mbula, George Odiwuor and Domnic Ombok
