The Communications Authority of Kenya (CA) introduced the Post4Health programme by handing six refrigerated vehicles to the Postal Corporation of Kenya (PCK), an effort valued at roughly KSh65 million.

The trucks, each costing about KSh10.8 million, are intended to move vaccines, insulin and other temperature-sensitive medicines to health centres in hard-to-reach locations, addressing the frequent breakage of the cold chain on the final road segment, Information, Communications and the Digital Economy Cabinet Secretary William Kabogo said.

The initiative stems from a Universal Postal Union (UPU) decision made early in the COVID-19 pandemic to enable postal operators to carry health products, and it coincides with a review of the Kenya Information and Communications (Postal and Courier Services) Regulations, 2026.

Principal Secretary Stephen Isaboke indicated that the revised rules, which will cover licensing, service quality, customer care and data protection, are expected to be issued before the end of the year.

“Our policy intent is straightforward and focuses on removing unnecessary barriers to entry, ensuring a level playing field, creating room for new models such as technology-driven courier-hailing services, and attracting the investment that the sector’s infrastructure needs,” Kabogo said.

The ministry is also advancing a National Addressing System Policy and Bill that aim to assign a recognised address to every household, business and public facility.

Data presented by CA Director-General David Mugonyi showed that PCK processed 577,694 domestic letters in the April-June 2026 quarter, a 70.2 per cent drop from a year earlier, and handled 993,099 domestic parcels, down 33.2 per cent, while private couriers moved 14.4 million domestic parcels, up 9.3 per cent, and 3.2 million domestic letters, more than five times PCK’s volume.

“The Post is not disappearing; it is evolving,” Mugonyi said.

The Universal Service Fund (USF) has earmarked KSh3.1 billion of its KSh40 billion 2023-2027 budget for modernising the post office, with a target of placing a postal outlet within 22 km of 99 per cent of Kenyans, down from the current 30 km.

Site surveys are under way for upgrades at 17 post offices across 17 underserved counties, and RFID tracking now operates in 30 post offices after ten were added in the previous financial year.

The National Treasury has reclassified PCK as a Government-Owned Enterprise, opening the door to new investment, and officials warned that Post4Health will only endure if the postal service adopts commercial discipline, adheres to route schedules and collaborates closely with county health departments.

The USF’s broader strategy, launched in 2025, includes projects that have connected nearly 800,000 people in underserved areas, provided broadband to 886 secondary schools, transformed 56 public libraries into digital hubs and linked 42 courts to digital networks.