MONICA KAYOMB0, Lusaka
TREATMENT Advocacy and Literacy Campaign and the Network of Zambian People Living with HIV and AIDS (NZP+) is saddened by the announcement made by the United States Ambassador to Zambia Michael Gonzales of cutting funding to Zambia’s Health’s sector meant for procurement of ARVs, malaria and Tuberculosis ( TB) drugs due to a country wide systemic theft of these products.
In a joint statement issued on Thursday immediately after the announcement that the US has cut $50 million in medications and medical supplies support following inadequate response to systematic theft by his Excellency Gonzales, TALC and NZP+ said the disruptions to the Global Health eco-system is something Zambia should get scared of.
“We have always appreciated the US’s generosity in the fight against HIV, TB and Malaria in Zambia. Together we have made a lot of progress in moving towards epidemic control. This announcement, if not handled properly by the Zambian government and the Ministry of Health in particular, has the potential to reverse the achievements made thus far. It is sad to hear that the US Embassy started a long time ago engaging our government to take action against perpetrators of this systemic theft and that little has been done,’’ the joint statement reads in part.
The two Organisations argue that the announcement if not handled properly by the Zambian government and the Ministry of Health in particular has the potential to reverse the achievements made thus far.“It is sad to hear that the US Embassy started a long time ago engaging our government to take action against perpetrators of this systemic theft and that little has been done,’’ the statement reads.
The two Organisations have since asked the Zambian government to take action against the pharmaceuticals involved in the selling of stolen medicines.They added that if possible, the involved pharmaceutical companies should have their licenses revoked and pay back the money involved.“As indicated by the US Ambassador, the government should ensure that they bring to book the master minders in this systemic theft of medicines and also share the audit report done on ZAMSA to stakeholders for the sake of transparency and accountability,’’ they said.
TALC and NZP have called on the government to confirm to the general public the validity of the statement issued by the US Ambassador.We are hereby asking the government to reach out to the US Embassy and come up with a roadmap of how they are going to address the concerns raised by the US Ambassador.
This is according to the statement realised by NZP+ Executive Director Fred Chungu and TALC Programmes Manager Clever ChilendeOn Thursday, during a press briefing, Mr Gonzales said it was with a heavy heart that his Government had announced the cutting of $50 million equivalent to K1. 4 billion due to country-wide systematic theft of the products.
“As soon as we discovered the country-wide theft in late 2021, we immediately informed the Zambian Government of our finding and initiated an on the ground assessment of private pharmacies across Zambia to understand the extent of the issue,’’ Mr Gonzales said.
