MADRID: September 16, 2026
The Kenya Medical Practitioners, Pharmacists and Dentists Union (KMPDU) joined trade union leaders, public sector workers, and civil society representatives from around the world at the Public Services Fightback Conference in Madrid, Spain, reaffirming its commitment to defending public services, protecting workers’ rights, and advancing social justice.
The conference brought together voices from diverse sectors and countries to examine the growing challenges facing public institutions and to develop collective strategies for protecting the services that millions of people rely on every day.
For KMPDU, the discussions resonated deeply with the realities facing healthcare workers in Kenya and across the world.
Defending Healthcare Means Defending Healthcare Workers
One of the central themes emerging from the conference was a simple but powerful truth: public services can only be as strong as the workers who deliver them.
Healthcare systems depend on doctors, nurses, pharmacists, clinical officers, laboratory professionals, therapists, and countless other frontline workers whose dedication sustains patient care every day. When these workers face poor working conditions, staffing shortages, wage suppression, or inadequate support, the quality and accessibility of healthcare inevitably suffer.
KMPDU shared its experiences from Kenya, where the Union has consistently advocated for fair remuneration, better working conditions, timely payment of salaries, career progression, and adequate staffing levels as essential pillars of a functional healthcare system.
Protecting healthcare workers is not merely a labour issue. It is a public health imperative.
The Global Challenge Facing Public Services
Conference participants reflected on the mounting pressures confronting public institutions worldwide.
Austerity measures, wage restraint policies, rising public debt burdens, underinvestment in essential services, and the gradual weakening of public institutions are increasingly affecting workers and communities alike.
These challenges are not theoretical.
They translate into understaffed hospitals, overwhelmed healthcare facilities, reduced access to quality services, and growing inequalities in healthcare, education, and other critical sectors.
For healthcare workers, these pressures often manifest as increased workloads, burnout, delayed promotions, inadequate resources, and difficulties delivering the quality of care that patients deserve.
The conference emphasized that protecting public services requires sustained investment, accountable governance, and recognition of the critical role played by frontline workers.
Protecting the Right to Organize
A key area of discussion was the importance of safeguarding workers’ rights, particularly the freedom to organize, collectively bargain, and engage in lawful collective action.
Across many countries, trade unions continue to serve as an essential mechanism for protecting workers from exploitation, advancing fair labour standards, and ensuring that public institutions remain accountable to the people they serve.
KMPDU reaffirmed its belief that meaningful improvements in healthcare systems are often achieved when healthcare workers have a strong collective voice and the ability to engage constructively with employers and governments.
The right to organize remains fundamental to securing dignity at work and strengthening public services.
Building Broader Alliances for Change
Beyond workplace issues, the conference highlighted the growing importance of solidarity between workers, communities, young people, civil society organizations, and social movements.
Participants emphasized that the challenges facing public services cannot be addressed by workers alone. Sustainable solutions require broad coalitions capable of advocating for equitable economic policies, strong public institutions, and investment in essential services.
For KMPDU, this message aligns closely with its long-standing position that healthcare workers, patients, and communities share common interests in building a stronger and more resilient healthcare system.
When workers and communities stand together, they strengthen their ability to influence policy, protect public institutions, and demand accountability from decision-makers.
A Shared Commitment to Public Service
As discussions continue at the Public Services Fightback Conference, KMPDU remains committed to learning from global experiences while contributing Kenya’s own lessons in labour organizing, healthcare advocacy, and social justice.
The challenges facing healthcare workers may differ across countries, but the underlying principles remain universal: dignity at work, fair compensation, strong public institutions, and quality services for all.
The conference serves as a reminder that the struggle to protect healthcare, education, and other essential public services is a shared global responsibility.
Strong Workers. Strong Public Services. Strong Communities.
KMPDU will continue working alongside national and international partners to defend workers’ rights, strengthen healthcare systems, and advocate for policies that place people at the center of public service delivery.
The struggle continues.
In Solidarity,
KMPDU
Defending Healthcare Workers. Strengthening Public Services. Advancing Social Justice.
