Youths’ Perception of Government Communication on Adoption of Social Health Insurance Fund (Shif) in Langata Sub-County, Nairobi County, Kenya

Abstract

Kenya is moving towards Universal Health Coverage (UHC) by establishing the Social Health Insurance Fund (SHIF) in response to issues presented by the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF). Despite various government efforts to encourage enrollment, the uptake remains low. Additionally, no studies in Kenya have examined the link between communication perception challenges and the adoption of SHIF. Therefore, this study aimed to examine youths' perceptions of the government’s communication regarding the adoption of SHIF in Langata Sub-County, Nairobi County, Kenya. The following study objectives guided the study: to assess youths’ perception of government communication channels on adoption of the SHIF program in Langata Sub-County, Nairobi County, to establish youths’ perception on the nature of content shared by the government on adoption of the SHIF program in Langata Sub-County, Nairobi County, and to establish youths’ perception of government officials’ communication on SHIF adoption by the youths in Langata Sub-County, Nairobi County.The study used a descriptive study design. The target population was youths. The study used simple random sampling. Data was collected using structured questionnaires. Descriptive analysis using SPSS version 25.0 revealed important insights into youths’ perceptions of government communication on the SHIF. Findings showed that youths slightly agreed that government communication channels such as television, social media, press conferences, and websites are informative and convincing (mean = 2.197). However, the quality of content shared received neutral to slightly negative feedback (mean = 3.153). Government officials’ communication was rated as neutral to disagreeable in terms of credibility, knowledge, and transparency (mean = 2.635). On SHIF adoption, results indicated that while most youths are enrolled and able to access services, gaps persist in consistent contribution payments and in the enrollment of family members (mean = 2.972), raising concerns about the program’s sustainability. The study recommends strengthening information dissemination across diverse media platforms, improving content quality, enhancing the competency and legitimacy of communication officials, promoting transparency and accountability, and developing a feedback-driven communication strategy.