2 million Kenyans suffer from diabetes

By Andrew Wasike

NAIROBI, Kenya

A new report released in Kenya on Wednesday by the Ministry of Health and Novo Nordisk -- a Danish multinational pharmaceutical company -- shows that the African continent burden from diabetes in 2015-2016 is frequently higher than expected for many countries in sub-Saharan Africa.

Speaking at the launch of the report in the Kenyan capital Nairobi, Joseph Kibachio, the head of the Ministry of Health’s Non-Communicable Diseases said that six out of every 10 Kenyans are suffering from diabetes emphasizing that 60 percent of all Kenyans have never been tested for the disease.

"Two million Kenyans are currently suffering from diabetes but are unaware that they need treatment. We only have less than 800,000 people under diabetes medication,” Kibachio said.

The report adds that Kenya and other African countries are witnessing high cases of diabetes due to late diagnosis and treatment.

Shaukat Sadikot, president of the International Diabetes Federation (IDF) told the conference that African states needed to improve their medical education especially online to solve issues with diagnosing diabetes.

The report estimates that the number of people with diabetes in Kenya is projected to grow by 135 percent by 2040. It recommends that African governments shoulder the burden of treating diabetes as 60 percent are currently being undertaken by the affected families.

In 2015 diabetes accounted for approximately 1.1 percent of Kenya's healthcare expenditure.