Govt Urged to Boost Domestic Health Funding

Zimbabwe’s Health Sector Working Group has urged the government and stakeholders to prioritise domestic funding and home-grown solutions to sustain healthcare delivery, following recent funding setbacks and ongoing challenges.

Speaking at the group’s meeting on August 20, 2025, at Rainbow Towers in Harare, Secretary for Health and Child Care and chairperson of the Health Sector Technical Working Group, Dr. Aspect Maunganidze, emphasised the importance of coordinated action in achieving the country’s health goals.

“This is a very important forum where we discuss matters of health, seek solutions, and ensure we deliver on our mandates,” Dr. Maunganidze said.

He noted that without good health, “you are not going to be productive as a nation.”

He described the abrupt withdrawal of funding by the United States Government as a “wake-up call,” stressing the urgency of boosting local resource mobilisation.

He proposed measures such as levies on sugar, fast food, and airtime, in addition to the AIDS levy, to strengthen domestic financing. “Health is not an expense; it is an investment,” he said, adding that Zimbabwe is pushing for national health insurance and smarter partnerships to ensure equitable access.

Vuyelwa Simile-Chitimbire, Executive Director of the Zimbabwe Association of Church-Related Hospitals, highlighted acute shortages of doctors and midwives in rural areas. “Neonatal and maternal health remains a major challenge, with many mothers walking long distances to reach care and presenting late for delivery,” she said.

She pointed to initiatives such as mothers’ waiting shelters, which provide prenatal monitoring and nutritional support, but warned that more funding was needed to improve maternal and child health services “to safeguard future generations.”

Development partners, including the WHO and UN agencies, continue to support Zimbabwe’s health sector through technical working groups.

However, delegates stressed that sustainable financing and collective action at home are critical for building a resilient health system.

“The health of our people is not the responsibility of one ministry or partner; it is a shared responsibility,” Dr. Maunganidze said. “Together, we must act with urgency to build a responsive health system.”