Soon, Kenyans may be able to call an ambulance the same way they order a cab straight from their phones.
Health Cabinet Secretary Adan Duale has announced a new digital platform set to go live by October 2025. The app, he said, will allow users to locate and request the nearest government ambulance during emergencies free of charge.
“We are introducing a very good ambulance system,” Mr Duale said during an interview on Tuesday. “By October, Kenyans will use it like the app of calling an Uber. You check in our system, the ambulance near you, you call it, it takes you to the hospital free of charge paid by the people of Kenya.”
The system is part of President William Ruto’s broader health reform agenda. According to Duale, the service will be funded by taxpayers through the government’s Emergency, Chronic and Critical Illness Fund a scheme already approved by the National Assembly.
The goal, Duale explained, is to eliminate delays in emergency medical response and to lift the financial burden off families who often struggle to afford private ambulance services.
“Today, if you are walking the streets of Nairobi and you get a stroke, you will be picked up by any ambulance, you will be taken to any hospital, you will be treated free of charge paid by the government, the government of William Ruto,” he added.
The ministry has not yet disclosed the name of the app or detailed how it will function across different regions, especially rural areas where road access and mobile signal can be unreliable. However, officials say its rollout is a key step toward digitising emergency healthcare.
The proposed system has already stirred conversation among citizens and healthcare workers, with many praising the idea but raising questions about ambulance availability, staffing, and the government’s capacity to deliver on the promise nationwide.
Kenya has faced repeated complaints over delays and limited ambulance coverage, particularly in rural and underserved areas. Experts have also warned that infrastructure such as poor roads, lack of trained emergency responders, and overloaded public hospitals could affect how well the app works once launched.
Still, the ministry appears confident. “This is not a pilot. This is a national commitment,” said a senior official in the health docket, speaking on background.
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