Kenya recruitment · 3 min read
Government health jobs in Kenya: who hires and how to apply
Why most public health jobs are county jobs, how county boards recruit, which licence each cadre needs, and the documents to keep ready.
Nurses, clinical officers, lab technologists and doctors make up a large share of public sector hiring in Kenya. Since devolution, most of these jobs are advertised by counties, not by the Ministry of Health. Here is who recruits, what the law asks county boards to consider, and how to prepare an application that passes the first check.
Counties hire most health workers
The Fourth Schedule of the Constitution makes county health services a county function. That is why dispensaries, health centres and county hospitals are staffed by the 47 county governments.
Each county recruits through its County Public Service Board, which establishes offices and appoints people to them on behalf of the county government (County Governments Act, section 59). The Ministry of Health and national hospitals recruit separately, for national roles.
What county boards must consider
Section 65 of the County Governments Act lists what a board weighs when it selects candidates:
- The prescribed qualifications for the office.
- Experience and achievements.
- Conduct under any relevant code of conduct, ethics and integrity.
- That at least thirty per cent of vacant entry level posts go to candidates who are not from the county's dominant ethnic community.
- Open and transparent recruitment, with merit, fair competition and the county's diversity as the overriding factors.
The licence comes first
For clinical roles, a current licence from your regulator is usually a minimum requirement in the advert. Keep it valid and keep a copy ready:
- Nurses and midwives: Nursing Council of Kenya.
- Doctors and dentists: Kenya Medical Practitioners and Dentists Council.
- Clinical officers: Clinical Officers Council.
- Medical laboratory staff: Kenya Medical Laboratory Technicians and Technologists Board.
- Pharmacists and pharmaceutical technologists: Pharmacy and Poisons Board.
Where the adverts appear and what to keep ready
- County websites and county public service board pages, and the national newspapers.
- The PSC portal for Ministry of Health posts at the national level.
- National referral hospitals' own careers pages.
Keep scanned copies of your ID, academic and professional certificates, licence and registration, and your internship completion letter. If you are shortlisted or offered the post, you may be asked for clearance certificates, which public bodies must issue free within seven days.
Sources and further reading
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Frequently asked questions
Who employs nurses and clinical officers in public hospitals in Kenya?
Mostly county governments, through their County Public Service Boards, because county health services are a county function under the Fourth Schedule of the Constitution.
Do I need a licence to apply for a government health job?
For clinical roles, adverts usually require registration and a current licence from the relevant regulator, such as the Nursing Council of Kenya or the Clinical Officers Council.
Do county jobs favour local candidates?
Section 65 of the County Governments Act requires at least thirty per cent of vacant entry level posts to go to candidates who are not from the county's dominant ethnic community.