President Hichilema Addresses Drug Shortage During Ministry of Health Visit

President Hakainde Hichilema confronted issues around a supposed drug shortage in Zambia, as well as the need to recruit medical staff and other healthcare issues during a working visit to the Ministry of Health on Thursday.

Speaking after a meeting with Health Minister Sylvia Masebo, the President said there had been a disparity between the reporting of a supposed drug shortage and the actual circumstances on the ground. He said that updates from provincial medical officers showed that the situation was under control and that the ministry was consistently delivering funding to the provinces.

“There appears to be a mismatch between what is being said and what is actually on the ground,” he said. “We were able to engage with the provincial medical officers in the ten provinces, who gave us the situation on the ground so hopefully the publicity of the ministry should pick it up and communicate what is prevailing on the ground.”

The comments came after President Hichilema spent a full day working within the Ministry of Health in order to better understand the healthcare challenges faced by the country. The President has indicated that he intends to spend a day at each ministry over the coming weeks, in order to fully appraise himself of the state of the government six months into his term.

Among the other issues discussed was the New Dawn government’s pledge to recruit an additional 11,200 healthcare workers by the end of 2022. A statement from the President’s office said that State House would be following the process closely and that job listings would be advertised from Friday. 

During his meeting with provincial medical officers, the President also discussed medicine theft, corruption in the medical procurement process, and the need for more 24/7 clinics around the country.

In a statement the President said he was “optimistic that working together we will achieve and eventually win against those who may not be appreciating the need for unity, business opportunities, jobs, quality education, quality health care services and ultimately quality life.”