Evidence-informed health planning and budgeting at county level in Kenya

In 2013, devolution of health services ushered in a new institutional arrangement in Kenya that allowed counties to play a bigger role in allocating public finances towards health. The change meant that the respective County Departments of Health (CDoH) must bid for resources alongside other sectors within the mandate of the county governments. In addition, CDoHs need to align their planning process to the budget calendar as defined in the Public Finance Management (PFM) Act (2012), strengthening their bid for financial resources through use of evidence including analysis of data from the Kenya Health Information System (KHIS) and health expenditure data to determine the health needs, costs, and financial gaps.

Access to and use of high-quality, readily available data by decision-makers, is fundamental to a strong and responsive health system. Linking the use of data to policy formulation, planning and budgeting processes throughout the financial year allows health facility managers, sub-county, and county health management teams (SCHMT and CHMT) to ensure that plans and budgets are made according to the health sector needs. The use of evidence also allows stakeholders to evaluate whether these plans and budgets have effectively improved provision of quality services and their demand and utilisation.

These participant and facilitator guides provide the following information:

• Participant guide: Supporting individuals or small groups from CHMTs, SCHMTs and facility representatives to learn more about the various aspects of the planning, budgeting, monitoring, and reporting (PBMR) functions as they relate to the health sector at a county level. The emphasis of the guide is on improving knowledge and skills in generating and using evidence during all the stages of the PBMR cycle.
• Facilitator guide: Supporting facilitators who are providing training and mentorship to CHMTs, SCHMTs and facility representatives and to strengthen the capacity of key CDoH staff on the various aspects of the planning, budgeting, monitoring, and reporting (PBMR) functions as they relate to the health sector at a county level. The emphasis of the guide is on improving knowledge and skills in generating and using evidence during all the stages of the PBMR cycle.