Kisumu: Women in rural Kisumu will now access free and safer transport to health facilities following a Sh7 million motorcycle donation aimed at improving maternal healthcare services and reducing delays in accessing treatment. The donation of 32 motorcycles to Boda Girls Kenya by Car and General will support trained female riders to ferry expectant mothers, children, and vulnerable women to hospitals across parts of Kisumu County.
According to Kenya News Agency, the motorcycles were unveiled on Wednesday during the launch of two new Boda Girls operational sites at Ahero Medical Centre in Nyando Sub-County and Chiga Hospital in Kisumu East Sub-county. Speaking at Ahero Multipurpose Training Centre in Nyando Sub-County during the launch of the initiative, Car and General General Manager George Rubiri said the partnership seeks to address transport barriers that continue to hinder women from accessing maternal healthcare services on time. Rubiri added that the programme goes beyond economic empowerment for women riders and directly targets maternal health outcomes within rural communities.
Rubiri highlighted that besides donating the motorcycles, the company would also train the women on road safety, motorcycle handling, and technical maintenance skills to ensure safe and professional operations. He described the Kisumu launch as the beginning of a wider partnership that could eventually be rolled out nationally, emphasizing the importance of monitoring and supporting the programme due to its significant community impact.
According to Boda Girls Kenya CEO Nancy Otieno, the programme was created to tackle unsafe transport experiences for women while also improving access to healthcare services. Otieno explained that the organisation trains women to become motorcycle riders, health advocates, and entrepreneurs within their communities. She noted that the programme was first piloted in Siaya County following concerns over sexual harassment and insecurity faced by women using conventional boda boda transport services dominated by male riders.
Otieno mentioned that the riders work closely with health facilities, community health volunteers, churches, and local leaders to identify pregnant women and vulnerable patients in need of medical attention. Besides transporting expectant mothers for antenatal and delivery services, the riders also support women seeking cancer screening, family planning services, and survivors of gender-based violence. She cited UNICEF data indicating that about 5,000 women die annually in Kenya due to delays in reaching healthcare facilities, while another 3,000 infants die because mothers fail to access hospitals in time.
The organisation currently operates in Kisumu, Siaya, and Homa Bay counties and plans to have 160 active riders by the end of the year across Kisumu, Siaya, Migori, and Homa Bay. In the next five years, the programme targets expansion to 43 hospitals in 14 counties while supporting at least 800 women riders and reaching more than one million beneficiaries annually. Otieno added that the initiative was also transforming livelihoods for women entering the male-dominated boda boda industry, allowing them to earn additional income to support their families and educate their children.
Ahero Medical Centre Director Ojowi Morris welcomed the initiative, stating it would improve reproductive healthcare uptake and immunisation coverage within Nyando Sub-county. Morris noted that poor transport systems and fear of rough treatment by male boda boda riders had contributed to low uptake of maternal healthcare services in remote villages. He expressed optimism that the female riders would encourage more women to seek timely healthcare services, revealing that the facility would offer incentives to the riders for every successful referral made to the hospital.
