Posts

Posted on

CSOs, women call for amendment of Termination Of Pregnancy Act

CSOs, women call for amendment of Termination Of Pregnancy Act

By Virginia Njovo, TellZim News

Young women and Civic Society Organisations (CSOs) have called for the amendment of the Termination of Pregnancy Act (TOP) to allow safe abortion services to be accessed widely with studies showing that 25 percent of pregnancies end up getting aborted due to various personal and social circumstances.

Speaking to TellZim News in an interview, Community Working Group on Health (CWGH) Executive Director Itai Rusike, said there was need for the revision of the laws that abolish abortion because despite it being illegal, a large number of women were doing it unsafely.

“Many women and girls are driven into the shadows because of restrictive abortion laws and lack of clarity about their provisions.

“They continue to seek for abortion services outside health facilities, with most of these abortions being done in unhygienic conditions by people who are not trained to do the procedure, let alone address the complications which may arise leading to high morbidity and mortality,” Rusike said.

He said the topic was taboo in Zimbabwe and the African society but abortions continue to happen behind the scenes so revising the legislation would help promote safe practices.

“The topic of abortion is taboo within the African context and cultures, as it is not openly talked about although evidence shows that it happens frequently,” said Rusike.

Adolescent Girls and Women Rights Forum (AGWRF) Executive Director and Sexual Reproductive Health Rights (SRHR) advocate Priscilla Mafa told TellZim News that the restrictive laws do not stop the need but promotes unsafe abortions.

“The restrictive abortion laws in Zimbabwe do not stop the need for abortion; they only make it unsafe. People are having backdoor abortions. The fact that 25 percent of pregnancies result in abortion despite legal barriers shows a critical gap in SRHR services, access to contraception, and comprehensive sexuality education,” said Mafa.

She said the restrictions endanger women and violates their bodily autonomy against the Maputo Protocol in which Zimbabwe is a signatory to saying there was need for policies that respect women’s health choices.

“Criminalizing abortion not only endangers women’s health but also violates their right to bodily autonomy as recognized by international agreements like the Maputo Protocol and Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), to which Zimbabwe is a signatory. We need progressive, evidence-based policies that prioritize women’s health and choices, rather than punitive measures that perpetuate stigma and inequality,” she said.

The Maputo Protocol, officially the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa, is a landmark human rights instrument adopted in 2003 that guarantees comprehensive rights for women and girls in Africa, including political participation, equality, reproductive health, and freedom from violence

CEDAW was adopted in 1979 by the UN General Assembly, and is described as an international bill of rights for women, defining discrimination against women and establishing legal obligations for states to end it.

In another interview with TellZim News, My Age Zimbabwe Trust Communications and Advocacy Officer, Veeslee Mhepo, said there was need for legislative reform to expand abortion access as lives were being lost due to unsafe abortion practices.

“We are advocating for the amendment of the TOP Act so that abortion services become available in every healthcare facility. Currently, only Post-Abortion Care (PAC) services are provided, but abortion itself remains largely inaccessible.

“We are losing lives due to unsafe backyard abortions. In addition to advocating for legal changes, we are conducting outreach programs to educate young people on Sexual and Reproductive Health (SRH) to reduce unwanted pregnancies,” said Mhepo.

Several young women who spoke to TellZim News expressed their desire for legal abortion services to be accessible at public health institutions, as many young girls get pregnant before they are ready for motherhood, leading to an increase in unsafe backyard abortions, which put lives at risk.

“We engage in sex but in most cases pregnancy is not expected. It may be another burden on top of my existing struggles so I may choose to terminate it. In most cases we are forced to do unsafe abortions because of its legality. So we think it the act should be revised so that safe services are provided,” said one young woman.

Another young woman said some were getting pregnant whilst in school thereby affecting their school despite the government allowing them to remain in school. So she said there was need for the law to consider that and allow victims of such situations to have safe abortions.

“I might not have been raped, but if I fall pregnant before finishing my studies, approaching my parents would be difficult so terminating the pregnancy will be the best option. So access to safe abortion should be available for those who need it,” she said.

Another woman said if the government does not want to amend the law, at least there should be more circumstances in which termination is allowed.

“We are having girls below 14 getting pregnant and the law should allow abortion in that circumstance and any other which may be deemed appropriate,” said the young woman.

Despite growing calls for reform, Masvingo Urban MP Martin Mureri, who is also a human rights lawyer, opposed the changes to the law.

“I am against this proposal. We must consider the original intent of the legislature when this law was made. What problem was it meant to address? Has that problem been solved?

“Yes, we know that abortions are happening through the backdoor, but that does not mean they should be legalized. Culturally, this cannot be defended,” said Mureri.

The TOP Act, which was enacted in 1977, has remained unchanged despite significant social and medical advancements. When Zimbabwe’s Constitution was amended in 2013, the law was left intact, despite shifting global perspectives on reproductive rights.

According to the TOP Act, abortion is legally permitted only if the pregnancy poses a serious threat to the mother’s life or could cause permanent physical impairment to the child. Abortion is also permitted if the pregnancy resulted from rape, incest, or intercourse with a mentally disabled woman.-TellZim News

Posted on

Zimbabwe’s New Mothers Face Extortion for ‘Free’ Child Health Cards

 

By Gamuchirai Masiyiwa, GPJ Zimbabwe

 

Women wait with their children at a local clinic in Harare. Many reported being unable  to obtain the free Child Health Card, leaving them without official records of their infants’ medical histories.

 

Photo Credit: Gamuchirai Masiyiwa, GPJ Zimbabwe

HARARE, ZIMBABWE — First-time mother Connie Jowa stands with her 3-month-old baby nestled against her back, chatting with other mothers in line. Like many women at this crowded clinic in Harare’s Mabvuku suburb, Jowa is trying to get a Child Health Card, which was unavailable when she gave birth at a public hospital, and was still out of reach at her local clinic. Health cards are mysteriously out of stock.

But they can be bought under the table, if you know who to ask and are willing to pay.

Zimbabwe’s Child Health Cards, meant to be free to new mothers, are crucial documents that track babies’ growth, vaccinations and medical histories. Without them, each clinic visit becomes a reset button. Inquiry into the child’s medical history starts from scratch. Since July 2024, the cards have disappeared from health facilities across Harare’s central hospitals and 42 council clinics — even though the card’s producers say they’re making enough to meet demand. This artificial shortage has birthed a shadow market where clinic staff quietly sell this essential document to desperate mothers. This sort of nickel-and-dime bribery exposes deep cracks in a health care system that’s already failing the most vulnerable people.

What started as a clandestine operation has become an open secret.

“When cards arrive at a clinic, they’re kept by the sister in charge. But it’s usually nurse aides or junior staff who sell them, working in cahoots with other staff members,” says Simbarashe James Tafirenyika, who leads the Zimbabwe Municipality’s Nurses and Allied Workers Union.

Someone who sells 100 cards can pocket around US$500, she says, and none of that money goes to the government of the council.

The going rate for the Child Health Card is US$5, say several mothers who spoke to Global Press Journal.

Medical Histories on Scraps of Paper

When the system works as designed, every mother receives a Child Health Card when her baby is born. Now, most mothers must track their infants’ medical histories on scraps of paper.

Harare’s council clinics alone deliver more than 3,000 babies every month, with each mother left scrambling for documentation.

“I feel hurt,” Jowa says. “I want to know what vaccines my child has received and their purposes, but I just can’t get that information.”

A nurse aide assistant at one of the council clinics has witnessed this shadow market.

“If a nurse is selling, they ask the mother to be ‘skillful’ if they need the card,” says the assistant, who requested anonymity for fear of retribution. In Zimbabwe, “skillful” is a common euphemism for paying small bribes.

While the Ministry of Health and Child Care is supposed to supply the cards for free, Prosper Chonzi, the City of Harare’s director of health, admits supplies have been erratic for six months and that people have complained about being forced to purchase these cards. Clinic workers may be exploiting the known shortage and coordinating among themselves to sell the cards rather than providing them for free, he says.

“We can’t rule that out,” he says.

The card shortage coincides with the quiet return of maternity fees in public hospitals. Though not officially announced, hospitals have begun billing mothers after delivery — a policy change the government would neither confirm nor deny.

High Inflation, More Corruption

Between 2011 and 2024, more than 1 million pregnant women in the country delivered babies for free at health care clinics, under a scheme called results-based financing. Maternal mortality rates dropped during that time.

But these gains, partly achieved through better access to safe delivery services, face new hurdles as budget constraints and economic pressures reshape the health care landscape.

Even in 2021, a study from Transparency International Zimbabwe surveyed over 1,000 people in Zimbabwe and found that 74% had been asked to pay a bribe while trying to access health care services. A feeling of being underpaid amidst a deteriorating economy and high inflation was a key driver among health workers who solicitated bribes, which has been a rising trend, according to the study.

“The motivation for earning an extra income is strong especially in countries with a high rate of inflation,” the study states.

Zimbabwe’s health care system faces chronic challenges, including an exodus of health workers to other countries, inadequate funding, drug shortages, obsolete infrastructure and more. In 1991, the government introduced user fees across public institutions as part of an economic structural adjustment program. The government abolished the fees in 2011, only to partially reinstate them around 2013.

Prudence Hanyani, a community activist in Harare, says the reintroduction of user fees in public hospitals will burden women who already shoulder extra costs, like paying for midwives, so they can get better treatment when giving birth.

 

“Maternal health services should be free,” she says, “because giving birth is a service for the nation that contributes to the country’s population.”

Mothers Pay the Price

Valerie Shangwa, who gave birth four and a half months ago at a private maternity hospital, still has no card for her daughter.

“You know how difficult it is to keep a paper,” she says. “When nurses ask about last month’s weight, you end up guessing, and that distorts the whole record.”

Charlton Prickise, technical director at Print Flow, says his company sells Child Health Cards only to government-authorized health facilities and faces no shortages.

“The shortages mean health facilities simply aren’t coming to get them,” he says.

Though Print Flow hasn’t detected leaks, Prickise recalls finding other versions of this card on the market two years ago, possibly from a nongovernmental organization. Print Flow isn’t the sole supplier of the cards, and they haven’t received any government orders recently.

In a written response to Global Press Journal, Donald Mujiri, spokesperson for the Ministry of Health and Child Care, said the shortage of Child Health Cards is due to supply chain inefficiencies and insufficient donor funding. The cards, he says, are procured with government funding and aid from supporting partners such as the United Nations Children’s Fund. Nevertheless, Mujiri says, the ministry needs to strengthen the supply chain management system at all levels and proactively mobilize resources for procuring the cards.

Meanwhile, mothers wait — or pay the price. Faith Musinami, 26, delivered her daughter in July 2024. An orderly told her the clinic only had cards for boys, but if she wanted, they could organize one for US$5. Musinami had not budgeted for the cost. She sacrificed the last penny she had. -Global Press Journal

 

 

Posted on

Health lobby cautions govt after Trump aid cuts

By Gamuchirai Nyamuziwa |

https://www.theindependent.co.zw/local-news/article/200039485/health-lobby-cautions-govt-after-trump-aid-cuts

A US$522 million reduction in United States aid to Zimbabwe has sparked calls for government to improve the management of domestic health revenue generated through taxation to mitigate the impact of reduced foreign support.

The cut follows an announcement by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio that the world’s wealthiest nation is discontinuing funding for 5 200 projects worldwide, previously supported through the US Aid for International Development (USAid).

This move, a key element of US President Donald Trump’s foreign policy, will see Washington withdrawing US$522 million earmarked for Harare, the bulk of which was allocated to the health sector.

Community Working Group on Health  director Itai Rusike told the Zimbabwe Independent that the loss of funding would create a significant financial gap, urging authorities to ensure efficient utilisation and management of health funds.

Rusike’s remarks come as the Zimbabwe Association of Doctors for Human Rights has challenged the government to account for revenue collected through the sugar tax introduced last year.

Finance minister Mthuli Ncube introduced the levy to strengthen public hospitals in their fight against rising cancer cases.

“Given the very significant role that USAid has been playing in the past, not just in the health sector, but also in the social sectors, it will leave a huge financing gap the Government of Zimbabwe would have to fill,” Rusike said.

“It, therefore, calls for the Ministry of Finance to ring-fence the sugar tax, airtime tax and Aids levy towards health.

“Maybe, what this is pointing to is the need for a well-defined and well-crafted National Health Insurance Scheme.

“The timing of the funding withdrawal is particularly concerning, given Zimbabwe’s current economic constraints and competing priorities. Without immediate action to mobilise replacement funds, the consequences could be dire.”

Some of the projects, which were supported by the US and have since been disbanded, include malaria prevention, maternal and child health and tuberculosis assistance programmes. These programmes provided technical, financial, and material support to HIV programmes, including wages for critical health workers.

“Communities that rely on critical services supported by US aid may face severe disruptions, potentially reversing hard-won progress in public health, including the ambitious ‘95-95-95’ targets for HIV,” Rusike said.

Cumulatively, these programmes received hundreds of millions of dollars from USAid annually.

In light of these challenges, Rusike called on health stakeholders, including private sector players, to urgently convene a national indaba.

“We need to have a quick national indaba with all the stakeholders in the health sector, including the private sector, to draw up the Zimbabwe Sustainability and Transition Roadmap,” he said.

Apart from health, the US has also suspended funding towards civil society organisations in Zimbabwe. –The Zimbabwe Independent

 

Posted on

Zimbabwe Braces for HIV Resurgence as US Aid Evaporates

By Gamuchirai Masiyiwa, GPJ Zimbabwe

Rumbidzai poses for a portrait in Epworth, an informal settlement in Harare. She is among thousands of sex workers affected by the suspension of US-funded mobile health clinics that provided HIV treatment, testing and contraceptives.

This story was originally published by Global Press Journal.

HARARE, ZIMBABWE — Rumbidzai, a sex worker from the bustling settlement of Epworth in Harare, has been taking antiretroviral drugs since 2017. For over two years, the mother of three has relied on mobile clinics that regularly visit her community to offer vital services such as ARVs, as well as condoms and HIV testing.

For years, the familiar sight of mobile health clinics rolling through the densely populated streets of the settlement meant survival for Rumbidzai and thousands like her. These clinics were lifelines, bringing essential HIV medication, testing and protection directly to those who needed it most.

Since Jan. 20, the clinics have all vanished — casualties of a sweeping United States foreign aid suspension that has left Zimbabwe’s most vulnerable populations in crisis.

“I don’t want to die — my children are still young. Who will take care of them?” says Rumbidzai, requesting only her middle name be used due to concerns about stigma.This story was originally published by Global Press Journal.

HARARE, ZIMBABWE — Rumbidzai, a sex worker from the bustling settlement of Epworth in Harare, has been taking antiretroviral drugs since 2017. For over two years, the mother of three has relied on mobile clinics that regularly visit her community to offer vital services such as ARVs, as well as condoms and HIV testing.

For years, the familiar sight of mobile health clinics rolling through the densely populated streets of the settlement meant survival for Rumbidzai and thousands like her. These clinics were lifelines, bringing essential HIV medication, testing and protection directly to those who needed it most.

Since Jan. 20, the clinics have all vanished — casualties of a sweeping United States foreign aid suspension that has left Zimbabwe’s most vulnerable populations in crisis.

“I don’t want to die — my children are still young. Who will take care of them?” says Rumbidzai, requesting only her middle name be used due to concerns about stigma.

A recent directive from US President Donald Trump ordering the United States Agency for International Development to cease operations has led to the shutdown of numerous crucial programs in Zimbabwe, directly impacting organizations such as Population Solutions for Health and CeSHHAR , which have long been a lifeline to sex workers.

“The sex workers are crying; they are afraid of dying,” says Chipo, an outreach worker who has served these communities since 2015. She asked only to use her middle name for fear of retribution. In Harare alone, she says, mobile clinics are serving nearly 6,000 sex workers — all now left scrambling for basic health care.

Zimbabwe has about 1.3 million people living with HIV/AIDS and close to 95% are on ARV treatment, a significant part of which is funded by the US, primarily through the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief program, known as PEPFAR.

In 2023, the allocated resources for HIV in eastern and southern African countries totalled 9.3 billion US dollars. Domestic funding covered about 40% of that amount, while the rest was provided by external sources, primarily PEPFAR and the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria.

Community-based mobile health clinics have proven to be an effective model for delivering health care to vulnerable populations, especially in countries with lower gross national incomes. These clinics are especially valuable for people who may not typically visit public health centers, such as people engaged in transactional sex.

Beauty Magora, who began sex work in 2015 and now serves as a community mobilizer, is worried about her upcoming HIV prevention treatment. She typically receives preexposure prophylaxis treatment every two months through mobile clinics, which provided the service free of charge. PReP is an injectable antiretroviral treatment that diminishes the chance of contracting HIV.

With the clinics suspended, she’s uncertain about switching to tablet medication. “I don’t know if there will be any effects if I switch to tablets,” she says.

Magora’s uncertainty reflects a broader crisis affecting the estimated 45,000 female sex workers in Zimbabwe, more than half of whom are HIV-positive.

The impact reaches beyond medication. Condoms, once freely distributed, have become precious commodities. “Local clinics only give us three to four strips per week,” Rumbidzai says. “In our trade, that’s not enough. People will take risks when supplies run out — something we desperately want to avoid.”

A shortage of condoms will lead to the creation of a breeding ground for infections and reinfections, affecting not just sex workers but their clients as well, says Muchanyara Cynthia Mukamuri, chairperson of the Women’s Coalition of Zimbabwe. At the same time, a huge portion of funding for antiretroviral therapy came from the US, she adds. “If that is withdrawn, will Zimbabwe be able to cope with the rise of need for HIV prevention, treatment and all these things?”

Mukamuri emphasizes that with all the natural resources Zimbabwe possesses, the country should now strive for self-sufficiency. “We need to revisit our strategies, refocus our efforts, and redirect our resources to ensure that people living with HIV are not left at the mercy of whoever decides to provide — or withhold — resources,” she says.

Meanwhile, Rumbidzai is clinging to hope for a change in policy. “If anything, Trump should lighten his heart, because our lives are hanging by a thread,” she says.

Global Press is an award-winning international news publication with more than 40 independent newsrooms in Africa, Asia and Latin America.

Photo credit: Gamuchirai Masiyiwa, GPJ Zimbabwe

Posted on

Carnage in NGOs, clinics

By Problem Masau and Vanessa Gonye

UNCERTAINTY has gripped thousands of employees in the non-governmental organisation (NGO) and civil society organisation (CSO) sectors after they were told to go home following United States President Donald Trump’s issuance of an executive order to freeze foreign aid for 90 days.

Zimbabwe has thousands of NGOs and CSOs across a range of sectors, with the majority of them getting huge chunks of their funding from the US.

The categories that have been severely affected are humanitarian aid, service organisations and political governance.

According to the 2019 Labour Force and Child Labour Survey conducted by the Zimbabwe National StatisticsAgency, the NGO sector accounts for 1,2% of the total employed persons in the country, which translates to an aggregate figure of 17 643 formal jobs.

The figure could, however, be larger amid indications that the sector was the second largest employer in Zimbabwe after government.

Employees who spoke on condition of anonymity yesterday told NewsDay that they were uncertain about their continued employment after Trump’s 90-day review.

“We are in a difficult position. We don’t know what will happen after the 90 days,” one of them said.

“I also do not know where I will get money for rentals since our salaries were also frozen.”

Zimbabwe Nurses Association secretary-general Enock Dongo told NewsDay that nurses, who were working at local clinics under the US President’s Emergency Plan for Aids Relief (PEPFAR) programme, have been told not to come to work.

“We have members who have been working at local clinics who have been told not to report to duty today (yesterday).

“Those people are under emotional stress and also the patients who were waiting for them are affected,” he said.

“What the Trump administration has done is very disrespectful. You cannot just wake up and tell people not to come to work without notice.

“Even if the Zimbabwean government wants to chip in, it needs to prepare first. Africa should wake up and not rely on Western funds.”

Most of the workers were told to surrender vehicles and gadgets belonging to the NGOs.

Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition (CiZC) director Blessing Vava said it was high time the country and the NGO sector came up with ways to deal with national problems.

“I think it is an opportunity for us to go back to the basics and build organic movements, where voluntarism and sacrifice are at the centre,” he said.

“Trump is doing what he is doing for his country and the American people.

“We are Zimbabweans and can never be American, so let’s focus on fixing our problems instead.”

The US embassy in Zimbabwe issued a statement confirming that the executive order was now in effect affecting aid programmes in the country.

The embassy noted Zimbabwe’s recent progress in combating HIV, noting that the country has achieved the global 95/95/95 targets — a benchmark for HIV testing, treatment and viral suppression.

However, the embassy called on government to take greater responsibility for sustaining these gains.

“They urgently need to be focused on buying antiretroviral therapy (ART) and getting nurses in clinics. They can do this,” the statement read.

Meanwhile, stakeholders in the health sector have expressed concern over massive reliance on donor funding as anything can happen leaving the masses in danger.

Community Working Group on Health executive director Itai Rusike said the consequences would be catastrophic to patients and communities in Zimbabwe that depended on US support for lifesaving interventions as they would face disruptions to critical services.

“It is risky and unsustainable for a country to depend substantially on external partners as donors can withdraw financial support anytime should their interests shift for some reason or other,” he said.

“It is very sad that when a country is highly dependent on external aid, health priority in government spending tends to fall in line with increased aid.

“Development assistance for health has crowded out government resources and created donor dependence.”

Health expert Martha Tholanah said the executive order was a wake-up call for Zimbabwe.

“Having such panic means our reliance on foreign funding is too heavy. We need more domestic resources for health from the national Treasury,” she said.

“Partners should complement the government, not the other way round. I hope we get our support for treatment sorted such that we never have to be in such distress when a foreign partner decides to withdraw their support.”

Approximately 1,2 million people in Zimbabwe are on HIV treatment and around 90% of HIV-positive pregnant women receive ART.

The developments mean children are under the risk of contracting HIV if mothers stop taking their medication and many more people will be affected given the state of the health sector in Zimbabwe.

By the end of 2023, the US had poured in over US$300 million in active programmes in Zimbabwe, according to the United States Agency for International Development foreign aid portal.

Finance minister Mthuli Ncube has indicated that the government will fund the gap left by the US through tax. -Newsday

Posted on

US withdrawal from WHO spells doom for Zimbabwe’s Health Sector

https://www.newsday.co.zw/local-news/article/200037270/us-withdrawal-from-who-spells-doom-for-zims-health-sector

Article By Vanessa Gonye |

ZIMBABWEAN health experts have raised concern over the newly-inaugurated United States President Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw his country from the World Health Organisation (WHO) saying the world’s largest economy was one of the major funders of the United Nations agency.

Trump accused WHO of mishandling the COVID-19 pandemic and other international health crises, adding that it had also failed to act independently of the inappropriate political influence of member States.

“World Health Organisation ripped us off, everybody ripped off the United States. It’s not going to happen anymore,” Trump said during the signing of an executive order on the withdrawal, shortly after his inauguration to a second term on Monday.

Analysts told NewsDay yesterday that Trump’s decision will affect the country’s health delivery programme funded through WHO.

Medical and Dental Private Practitioners of Zimbabwe Association president Johannes Marisa said the withdrawal would be a serious blow to international health systems.

“In terms of disease outbreaks, like recently with the Mpox, with the COVID-19, with other diseases, measles and so forth, WHO has to do serious surveillance, has to do serious communication, undertake contact tracing and has to do serious case management.

“These programmes or strategies were funded by WHO, which is sponsored by the US among other countries meaning failure to access money or to have adequate funding, the World Health Organisation will be on its knees,” he said.

Itai Rusike, Community Working Group on Health executive director expressed hope for a way out of the impasse between the US government and WHO.

Rusike said WHO being the global authority on health required all the support both technically and materially to fully execute its mandate.

“The withdrawal of the US implies it will not provide the support which we hear amounts to about a fifth of the WHO budget and this is of concern when health challenges are increasing.

“This has considerable impact on the organisation’s operations at all levels and may result in reduced support for our country when the fragility of our health system demands more resources,” he said.

Rusike said Trump’s decision served as a reminder to governments to quickly move towards self-sustenance.

Tendai Westerhof, Pan-African Positive Women’s Coalition Zimbabwe’s national director, echoed the same sentiments highlighting issues of sustainability.

“80% of our funding comes from external donors and we only have 20% that we mobilise locally. So really, this calls for us as countries, especially us in the developing world, to be not too dependent on external funding.

“We appreciate that the US was funding PEPFAR and a lot of money was coming into countries through PEPFAR, through the global fund and WHO, it’s a world organisation that does not discriminate,” she said.

Westerhof added: “We must look internally and be innovative to see how best we can increase our internal domestic funding to the health budget in particular.”

In a statement yesterday, WHO director Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said news of the US’s withdrawal from the organisation was regrettable.

He said WHO played a crucial role in protecting the health and security of the world’s people by addressing the root causes of diseases building stronger health systems, and detecting, preventing and responding to health emergencies.

“The United States was a founding member of WHO in 1948 and has participated in shaping and governing WHO’s work ever since, alongside 193 other member States, including through its active participation in the World Health Assembly and Executive Board,” he said.

Tedros expressed hope the US will reconsider and engage them “in constructive dialogue to maintain the partnership between the US and WHO.” –  Newsday