M-PESA Foundation and Proximie Limited have established a Digital Operating Room at Kilifi County Referral Hospital to support emergency obstetric and neonatal care, targeting reductions in maternal and newborn deaths in Kilifi County.

In a statement dated July 8, 2026, the organisations said the digitised operating room will be implemented as a pilot for the next year under the Uzazi Salama Programme. The facility is intended to enable timely surgical interventions supported by technology, reducing the need for patients to travel long distances or be referred to other hospitals for specialised procedures.

The initiative comes as counties continue to invest in health infrastructure and digital solutions to improve outcomes, amid persistent gaps in access to specialist services, particularly in maternity and newborn care. Kilifi, a fast-growing coastal economy with a mix of rural and urban populations, has faced challenges related to 24-hour maternity coverage in some facilities, which can delay emergency interventions.

Patricia Ithau, Trustee, M-PESA Foundation, said the partnership is designed to extend specialised services closer to communities and relies on network connectivity to support remote collaboration during procedures. “Our collaboration with Proximie through this technology will strengthen the Uzazi Salama Programme by bringing communities closer to specialised health services. As M-Pesa Foundation, our commitment is to provide reliable network through our strong 4G and 5G technology by Safaricom which will power this tele-surgery solution and ensure seamless procedures without interruptions,” Ithau said.

According to the statement, the tele-surgery solution is expected to limit referrals by enabling “complex and specialised live procedures” while connecting surgeons at Kilifi County Referral Hospital with other practitioners in Kenya and internationally for skills transfer and case support.

Dr. Shannon Shibata-Germanos, Head of Global Health at Proximie, said Kilifi was selected based on maternal health indicators in the county and that the implementation has drawn in sector stakeholders. “The maternal health indicators in Kilifi are what led us to choose this county for the Digital Operating Room to curb instances of maternal and infant mortality. Uzazi Salama is an opportunity for us to plug in with innovative solutions at scale. We have garnered the support of key stakeholders such as the Surgical Society of Kenya to implement this programme. Our assurance is that patient data remains confidential with data protection a key aspect of this project,” she said.

The statement cited mortality indicators for Kilifi County, reporting a maternal mortality rate of 532 per 100,000 live births, attributed to the Kenya Demographic and Health Survey (KDHS). It also reported neonatal mortality at approximately 24 per 1,000 live births, infant mortality at 34 per 1,000, and under-five mortality at 40 per 1,000. The organisations said limited access to 24-hour maternity services in some facilities contributes to delays in emergency care.

For Kenya’s healthcare market, the project illustrates how private-sector and philanthropic funding is increasingly being paired with digital health infrastructure to address specialist shortages and improve service quality outside major urban centres. If the pilot demonstrates reduced referrals and improved clinical outcomes, it could strengthen the case for similar deployments in other counties, while raising questions on long-term operating costs, workforce training, and data governance as digital systems scale.

Uzazi Salama, according to the statement, was launched in 2024 and expanded from Kilifi South and Magarini to all sub-counties in Kilifi County. The partners said the digital operating room is intended to expand access to reproductive, maternal, neonatal, child and adolescent health services supported by the programme.

Proximie describes itself as a health technology company that digitises operating rooms using artificial intelligence, cloud-based software and augmented reality, connecting surgical teams to support operations remotely. The partners did not disclose the cost of the digital operating room or the funding structure for the pilot.