1,000 Health Centres Connected to the Internet

The SMART Zambia Institute has completed internet connection to one thousand health facilities nationwide.

Smart Zambia National Coordinator Percy Chinyama says the eventual target is to provide Internet to all 3,400 health facilities by the end of 2025.

During a meeting of Senior Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Officers from various Ministries, Mr. Chinyama revealed that a systems architecture for the whole government infrastructure is being developed.

Chinyama said the infrastructure will unify government operations and digitise all services to promote transparency, adding that all 56 Constituencies and all Post Offices countrywide are fully connected through Starlink.

The Ministry of Health’s Director of Information and Communication Technology, Andrew Kashoka, said he was pleased with the progress made in connecting health facilities.

“Issues of alternative power are at the top of our agenda, and those are things we are looking at and targeting. When things go back to normal, we know that we have those facilities in place with internet.” Mr Kashoka added.

During the meeting, Ministry of Justice Director of Information and Communication Technology Sechwayo Nzima explained that the new connections and the implementation of Contracts Management Systems have sped up the clearance of contracts for Constituency Development Fund (CDF) projects. 

“This reduces the time aspect, and we are able to see a great increase in the use of the CDF” said Mr Nzima, adding that contracts are now being approved by the Attorney General online without council officials travelling to Lusaka to seek physical approvals.

Earlier this year, when Mr. Chinyama announced the plans to digitise one thousand health facilities, the SMART National Coordinator said, “This development is a testament to the government’s commitment to leveraging technology to improve the lives of Zambians.”