Zimbabwe's antiretroviral (ARV) medication supplies will be depleted by the end of June if it fails to address a funding gap which has been created by USAID's recent cessation of its aid.
The United States Embassy in Zimbabwe paused all U.S. foreign assistance funded by or through the State Department and USAID for review and this has led to temporary suspension of services at New Start Centres and truck stop clinics across the country impacting patients on antiretroviral therapy (ART) and those seeking PrEP refills.
This has caused panic as HIV patients face uncertainty.
However, speaking in a parliamentary session Wednesday, Minister of Health Douglas Mombeshora assured the national assembly that by the end of June the government would have replenished its stocks.
"We sat down and assessed the type of medicines that we need. It is not correct that all medicines were coming through USAID, I think it was 31%.
"We have medicines to take us up to the end of June but by June, we will have replenished.
"People should not panic, there is enough medication and medication will be available forever," Mombeshora said.
Mombeshora also said the termination of USAID funding has led to job losses for healthcare personnel in HIV treatment clinics, disrupted transport for remote healthcare access, and has forced the ministry to seek additional funding to address these challenges.
The health ministry will be approaching Parliament for support during the supplementary budget for review.
"We are therefore seized with scouting for replacements. The other challenge that we are facing pertains to vehicles and motorbikes which were used by healthcare personnel to access remote clinics.
"Motorbikes which were used to transport blood samples were also affected by the executive order.
"This has culminated into a situation where our Ministry is in the process of requesting extra funding to cater for such key personnel," Mombeshora said.
Before the funding cut, Zimbabwe used to receive over $200 million annually from the U.S. President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), and the U.S government has given Zimbabwe over $1.7 billion since 2006 to strengthen health systems and support people living with HIV.
