The government has assured the nation that antiretroviral (ARV) medicines will remain available and accessible to all who need them through to the end of 2025, and plans are already in motion to secure supply for the first half of 2026.
This
reassurance comes amid growing global concerns following the January executive
order signed by US President, Donald Trump, which threatened to destabilise
international supply chains for essential medicines, including those used in
HIV treatment.
In a follow-up
interview, the Minister of Health and Child Care, Dr Douglas Mombeshora
confirmed that Zimbabwe, anticipating possible disruptions, acted swiftly and
now has enough ARVs in stock.
“As I have said
previously, we began the year with sufficient ARV stocks to last until the end
of June. Following the announcement of the executive order by the United
States, the Government acted swiftly by placing new orders through two
suppliers to close the anticipated gap,” Dr Mombeshora said.
“The stocks are
now in place to cover us up to the end of the year, not yet completely
delivered. We started receiving the medicines about three or four weeks ago and
we are hoping by the end of the first or second week of July, all deliveries
will have been completed. We can assure the nation that we have enough stocks
for ARVs up to the end of the year. We are now working on a plan because we
start procuring before they run out so that we also cover the next six months
from January 2026 to June 2026.”
Zimbabwe’s
resilience in the face of global supply disruptions is largely anchored in its
dual domestic financing model, the AIDS Levy, established in 1999 and the newer
SIN Tax on sugary drinks and unhealthy foods.
These
home-grown funding streams have managed to empower the National AIDS Council
and the Ministry of Health and Child Care with essential financial
independence, ensuring consistent procurement of medicines and uninterrupted
HIV treatment programmes. ZBC
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