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{
    "id": 1129877,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1129877/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 106,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. Were",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 13183,
        "legal_name": "Petronila Were Lokorio",
        "slug": "petronila-were-lokorio"
    },
    "content": "Our young people, especially those who had been listed on the CRB limiting their access to loans, have been delisted as the President told us. We are grateful and hope that the very many Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) that are listed in the CRB will also be looked into; not just because of COVID-19, but moving forward. This is because some of these people were put on the CRB list when everybody was affected economically. We also know that the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) met its target. We have been told this before. The President emphasized that they are collecting more money than ever before in spite of the COVID-19 pandemic. What is it that they were not doing right before if in times of a crisis they are able to collect more money? We hope that this is another opportunity that has arisen in a crisis, that the KRA is one of the success stories that has arisen during the COVID-19 pandemic. The President talked about an increase in Intensive Care Unit (ICU) beds, which is another opportunity. We only had a few of them. Some hospitals in the counties did not have ICU bodies, but because of the stimuli that the Government put, we have had a 502 percent increase in ICU beds in our public hospitals. We only had one lab for testing notifiable diseases. The President informed us that we now have 95 laboratories. As we continue to suffer from the consequences of COVID-19, we have also seen that there are a number of opportunities it gave us to grow, examine our weaknesses and look into the most important thing, which is our health. Madam Deputy Speaker, the President also informed us that they have put up several hospitals and encouraged more private players to put up hospitals. That is welcome. We want more investors to put up hospitals rather than putting up malls. We have realized that in times of crisis, hospitals are more important than malls, which are closing down since no one is visiting them due to COVID-19. However, people need hospitals more. That gave us an opportunity to grow our health sector and probably we will continue to be the medical tourism hub of this region. The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposesonly. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate."
}