The second edition of the First Lady Half Marathon – set to take place on March 8, 2015 – is aimed, the First Lady said, at making good on her promise to equip each of the 47 Kenyan counties with a mobile clinic.
Training under former world marathon champion, Douglas Wakiihuri, Ms Kenyatta has clocked the miles to get ready for the event in Nairobi and the high altitude self styled University of Champions, Iten.
The event organized under the Beyond Zero Campaign that aims at raising Sh600 million which will go towards buying 27 fully-kitted mobile clinics to be distributed to 27 counties to help reduce maternal deaths.
In order to improve maternal and child health outcomes in the country, the First Lady of Kenya, Margaret Kenyatta launched the ‘Beyond Zero Campaign’ on 24 January 2014 in Kenya’s capital Nairobi. The new initiative also aims to accelerate the implementation of the national plan towards the elimination of new HIV infections among children.
According to the Commission on Information and Accountability for Women and Children’s Health 2013 Update Report, in 2012 alone, more than 100 000 children died before their fifth birthday—largely due to preventable causes. In the same year, 13 000 new HIV infections occurred among children and 62% of children living with HIV did not access life-saving antiretroviral drugs.
