Nairobi's main public morgue will soon be unveiling its private wings in a bid to restore dignity and improve services.
Chief Officer, of Public Health Tom Nyakaba, told the Star on Thursday that the new wing will be unveiled in the next 45 days
"Under the leadership of Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja, we intend to unveil a private wing that will hold 24 bodies," he said.
With the new wing in place, more customer service officers will be deployed to assist with guest relations.
Nyakaba noted that the City Mortuary is the largest government-owned mortuary facility in East and Central Africa, and has the capacity to store 176 bodies.
With the additional private wing, more bodies will be accommodated.
Nyakaba also revealed that the morgue will have a chapel manned by a chaplain who can offer funeral services to those who are unable to secure a church facility before burying their kin.
Already works are ongoing including the installation of new cooling units, cold room doors and drainage at the morgue.
According to a City Mortuary report dated April 5, 2023, Nairobi's main public morgue has 142 cooling units but only 33 are in use.
In order to keep work at the morgue flowing, 63 cooling units will be installed to bridge the gap.
The morgue has 19 cold room doors of which 9 are supposed to be replaced. At the moment, City Hall has already replaced 6.
Five officers will also be deployed to the county funeral home to assist with recording admissions and receiving clients.
This will also increase client public awareness and knowledge of how the funeral process works and assist the family deal with the loss experienced in a dignified manner
To beef up security, the county government will increase the number of officers from six to 10 at the morgue