NAIROBI, KENYA – — Working with local healthcare providers and non-governmental organizations (NGOs), Johnson & Johnson strengthens its operations to continue addressing the health issues that matter most to the people of Kenya
Following the opening of its West Africa office in Ghana earlier this week, Johnson & Johnson today announced the further expansion of its operations in Africa with the launch of a new office in Nairobi, Kenya. The company’s new presence will bring together multiple teams representing Johnson & Johnson consumer, medical device, pharmaceutical, global public health (GPH) and global community impact (GCI) organizations to deliver an integrated approach to improving health outcomes in the region.
Johnson & Johnson’s office in Kenya will help coordinate the company’s global public health capabilities and resources to deliver sustainable, measurable impact against significant public health needs in the region. The team in Kenya will translate the company’s strategy into locally-executable programs that drive health impact in collaboration with local health delivery partners. Business development teams from Johnson & Johnson companies will also collaborate with academic centers and entrepreneurs to explore local innovative healthcare-based initiatives.
“The opening of the new Johnson & Johnson office will play a major role in supporting our goal of helping to improve the quality of and access to healthcare in the region, while showcasing a model that can be replicated across Africa,” said Vittorio Sereni, Country Manager of the Johnson & Johnson office in Nairobi. “We are building a talented team that will lead the expansion of our product portfolio and continue to provide responsive, comprehensive care solutions to meet the evolving health issues that impact patients and health care providers here. Specifically, our team will prioritize issues that matter most to Kenya including multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR TB) and the increasing burden of chronic disease, as well as continuing our focus on HIV and maternal, child and newborn health.”
Dr. Nicholas Muraguri, Principal Secretary of Health in Kenya, participated in the opening ceremony celebrating the company’s commitment to the region. He shared his vision for healthcare in Kenya and welcomed opportunities to collaborate on projects that will help strengthen the country’s healthcare system and attract investment into local health-related programs.
Building on the company’s 86-year history in Africa, Johnson & Johnson will work in Kenya to support efforts to deliver innovative treatments, diagnostic technologies and service delivery models that address a variety of patient needs. While helping to strengthen national health systems and build research and development capabilities among Kenyan researchers, the Johnson & Johnson team will focus on disease prevention and the health needs of young people in order to build a sustainable path to well-being for future generations.
“We’ve learned over time that solving last-mile challenges through local empowerment and partnerships offers the greatest potential impact in the fight against public health challenges, and that it can also help fuel the local economy and catalyze infrastructure investments,”
said Alma Scott, Vice President of Global Operations and Partnerships for Johnson & Johnson’s global public health organization. “As part of our new global public health strategy, we believe there are areas where Johnson & Johnson can leverage its capabilities in research and development, service delivery and advocacy to partner with local governments, NGOs and community-based organizations in the creation of novel, evidence-based solutions that meet the region’s evolving health care needs.”
Johnson & Johnson leads or sponsors several programs already in Kenya that are focused on building professional capacity, strengthening health systems, providing care to neglected or vulnerable patient communities and working with young people. For example, the company is empowering adolescent girls to prevent HIV, providing scholarships to healthcare professionals, supporting surgical skills training and partnering with the Kenya Education Fund to prepare young girls for careers in healthcare. Examples of other ongoing programs in Kenya supported by Johnson & Johnson include:
- Helping Babies Breathe (HBB) trains health care workers in low-resource settings to intervene when newborns have birth asphyxia, a potentially fatal inability to take the first breath of life.
- Mothers2mothers (m2m) empowers mothers living with HIV to be mentors and role models to educate HIV-positive pregnant women to access essential services and medical care.
- Mission for Essential Drugs & Supplies (MEDS) supplies low-cost medicines and medical supplies to hospitals and non-profit health programs.
- Children of God Relief Fund-Nyumbani ensures that children orphaned by HIV/AIDS have a home and are cared for by another generation left behind by the epidemic: grandmothers.
- The Duke Global Health Institute hosts a family-based intervention in Western Kenya that aims to improve family functioning, strengthen adolescents’ mental health and reduce sexually risky behavior.
- HURU International provides free health and hygiene kits and other essential feminine products, as well as life-saving information about HIV/AIDS prevention, to adolescent girls in Mukuru, a slum community in Nairobi.
- KickStart International provides grants to help smallholder farming families switch from rain-fed farming to irrigated agriculture and improve their livelihoods in Kenya’s drought-stricken areas.
- Bridge to Employment motivates high school students from disadvantaged communities to seek higher education and expose them to careers in healthcare.
- DREAMS is a $385 million partnership to reduce HIV infections among adolescent girls and young women by helping them develop into Determined, Resilient, Empowered, AIDS-free, Mentored and Safe Women.
- New Horizons is a pediatric drug donation program that addresses an unmet medical need in the developing world with capacity building playing a pivotal role in providing holistic care. Johnson & Johnson provides support through program-wide implementation workshops, pilot youth summits and technical support workshops.
- The DREAMS Innovation Challenge seeks innovative solutions to reduce HIV infections and infuse new thinking and high-impact approaches to meet the urgent, complex needs of adolescent girls and young women.
- Community Media Trust specializes in communication in the fields of health, human rights and gender-based violence to develop interpersonal communication skills that will improve health outcomes.
- The Africa Innovation Challenge (AIC) seeks novel consumer health care ideas that focus on three critical areas: promoting early child development and maternal health; empowering young women; and improving family well-being.
Currently,5.7% of GDP in Kenya is devoted to addressing health challenges[i]. Within the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, Kenya has prioritized health as one of the five goals that matter most to the country. “Johnson & Johnson commercial teams paired with GPH and GCI colleagues will provide capabilities that complement the Kenyan government’s growing dedication to health improvement in the country,” said Jane Griffiths, Company Group Chairman EMEA for Janssen, one of the pharmaceutical companies of Johnson & Johnson. “Our team in Kenya will continue to support the efforts of NGOs and health care providers and seek opportunities to innovate through partnerships involving research collaboration, health education and vaccine development.”
About Johnson & Johnson in Africa
Johnson & Johnson’s presence in Africa includes business operations, public health programs and corporate citizenship. The operations expand upon the company's legacy and presence in Africa, which began in 1930, and build on existing work conducted by the more than 1,500 employees and the three manufacturing sites on the continent. Global public health collaborations focus on partnerships that improve the lives of women and children, prevent disease among the most vulnerable, and strengthen the healthcare workforce. The company’s global public health strategy uses an end-to-end approach, which includes early stage disease-specific research, product development, manufacturing and distribution, and education and training resources through its philanthropic efforts.
Through innovation, collaboration and local engagement we are:
- Cultivating Africa’s innovation
- Expanding R&D skills and capacity among African scientists
- Catalyzing healthcare infrastructure investments
- Enhancing collaboration with local health delivery partners
- Boosting education and training resources for healthcare workers
- Empowering African youth to thrive and become drivers of change
- Improving access to medicines.
About Johnson & Johnson
Caring for the world, one person at a time, inspires and unites the people of Johnson & Johnson. We embrace research and science - bringing innovative ideas, products and services to advance the health and well-being of people. Our approximately 126,900 employees at more than 250 Johnson & Johnson operating companies work with partners in health care to touch the lives of over a billion people every day, throughout the world.
PRESS CONTACTS:
Kenya Media Contact
Gilbert Manirakiza
+25 47 215 49094
Africa Media Contact
Laura Nel
+27 83 357 8938
EMEA Media Contact
Matt Juhani Ojanen
+34 678 404 870
United States Media Contact
Seema Kumar
+1 732 524-2646, +1 908 405-1144
[i] World Bank, Health expenditure, total (% of GDP); World Health Organization Global Health Expenditure database http://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SH.XPD.TOTL.ZS
