UK donates drugs despite Mugabe’s regime change rants

By Tatenda Dewa | Harare Bureau |

The United Kingdom, through the Department for International Development (DFID), has donated essential drugs that will help ease the country’s critical shortage of medicines.

This was revealed in a joint statement by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the Zimbabwean government on Friday. The medicines will be administered through the UNICEF managed Health Development Fund (HDF).

Zimbabwe’s public health institutions were as way back as January this year reported to be suffering a critical shortage of essential medicines.

In the 2016 national budget, government managed to allocate a paltry $800,000 to the National Pharmaceutical Company (Natpharm) while it owes against the drug manufacturing unit some $24 million.

Against this, President Robert Mugabe was given reported hundreds of millions to fund his travels and personal life. Of late, Mugabe has been loud in his criticism of the UK, which he accuses of working with local citizens to topple his government.

Patients at public hospitals are spending weeks without drugs, forcing relatives to acquire them on their own from privately run stores if they can.

Health and Child Care minister, David Parirenyatwa, hailed the DFID drugs shot, saying the medicines would be hastily dispatched to public health institutions across the country.

“Essential medicines are critical to the optimal functioning of our health system. We currently have a gap in availability of medicines which is impacting negatively on patients and health professionals. This donation is well received and will go a long way to assisting us in closing this gap,” he said.

The package includes antibiotics for the treatment of common diseases and medicines for the treatment of cancer and asthma, but the statement did not indicate the dollar value of the disbursement.

“I am pleased that these essential medicines will further contribute to treating sickness, preventing premature death, and improving the quality of life for people all over the country,” said Annabel Gerry, head of DFID Zimbabwe. Nehanda Radio