An Iconic Pillar of Hope in a Rural Township: The Emergence, Growth and Development of AIC Kapsowar Mission Hospital

Abstract

The article is about the emergence, growth and development of AIC Kapsowar Mission Hospital, the hospital that was central to the development of Kapsowar town since its establishment in 1934. The hospital was so iconic in the sense that it opened Marakwet District to the rest of the world. The hospital created employment opportunities for Kenyans who flocked the town in their thousands in search of jobs. Kapsowar which was once a frontier town transformed into a medical town making it display many signs of prosperity. However, it was not easy for the Africans living in Kapsowar to let go of their lands. They had to fight back and protect what according to them was given to them by their deity ASIS. Among the Marakwet, land was communally owned and its use was decided by the community elders. Individuals did not own land as the sole owners but the land was in the custody of clans. This factor made it very hard for the missionaries to acquire land to establish the mission hospital when they first arrived at the place. The locals were only convinced after a series of successful surgeries were conducted by the mission doctors and that was when they allowed them to settle in their land. That move marked the beginning of a new civilisation among the Marakwet. Many women began to visit the hospital for child delivery, and child mortality rate reduced drastically owing to the good works of the mission doctors. All the good things brought about by the mission Hospital including the development of the town, employment opportunities, improved infrastructure among others notwithstanding, challenges never seized to hit the Mission hospital and the latest challenge was posed by the outbreak of the novel corona virus in 2020 causing a lot of fear and panic to both the doctors and the patients.