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CorrespondingThe shortage of drugs and the fact that pharmacies refuse electronic transfers preferring US dollars should persist as the government is still trying to eliminate an immediate solution to the crisis, Health and Childcare Minister Obadiah Moyo said.
This happens when the Zimbabwean government reaches out to a wide range of sympathizers to avoid disaster amid an increase in fatalities such as the common struggle of citizens to get the dollar to buy essential drugs.
The main representative of the country is the vice president of India, Venkaiah Naidu, who promised to provide 100 tons of drugs.
The government of President Emmerson Mnangagwa also hired the World Health Organization (WHO) to provide relief, as the "situation has become an emergency."
Recently, WHO helped the South African nation with $ 3 million during the outbreak of cholera
"This issue of drug sales in US dollars is an issue that also worries us as a ministry because we were thinking that all pharmacies should sell their drugs with the currency that is readily available," Moyo told the senators on Thursday -market. .
"The money that is out of the supply is from United States dollars, so it does not help that currency that is not available is what they are asking people to pay. In addition, for the foreign currency to be found, it is very difficult. Our relatives in rural areas can not afford these drugs because they can not get hold of US dollars. "
Moyo turned to pharmacies to accept banknotes, wire transfers, and health care cards.
"As of now, RBZ does not have enough US dollars, but we are also begging them that of the few US dollars they own, they should closely watch those to whom they give the money – if they are using that drug money or diverting it to other uses, "said the former chief executive of Chitungwiza Hospital.
Moyo said the government is committed to providing resources for the industry and that the Reserve Bank of ZImbabwe has released what it can for the pharmaceutical industry.
He added that the cabinet has set up a committee to investigate how the foreign currency is being used.
He insisted that the final solution is for Zimbabwe to produce its own drugs.
"From the allocation we will get, we will buy raw materials to give CAPS and Datlabs the manufacture of medicines; they will be responsible for the money that will be given to them. After manufacture, we will ship these medications to the National Pharmaceutical Company (NatPharm). NatPharm does not have enough medicines in its warehouses from now on. We told NatPharm that we want to do a refueling exercise. We want to fill their warehouse with drugs, "he said.
"We also engaged the World Health Organization (WHO), they helped us during the outbreak of cholera. They gave us drugs worth $ 3 million, now they are also helping us. They are in their meetings because we have told them that it is now an emergency in Zimbabwe. Yesterday I was with the WHO Head in Zimbabwe and he sent a message to his headquarters in Congo. We also engaged his Director General, who is in Geneva, I met him when I went to a meeting and he understood that and they also want to help us. Their hearts are pure when it comes to helping Zimbabwe. "
Moyo said that arresting pharmacy owners who are charging US dollars is not the solution.
He could not, however, offer an immediate solution.
"As a ministry, we commit ourselves to the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Finance. I think you saw what happened to the fuel crisis, some garages had their licenses revoked. We also think about doing the same, but we have to be wise and we want pharmacies to complain that we revoke their licenses because of the US dollar. On the other hand, we are saying that the US dollar is another currency that we can use to trade in Zimbabwe. We involve the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Finance on the way forward, "he said.
Health stakeholders have urged the government to move rapidly to the parallel market to bring health back to the medical industry and avoid distortions in the prices of services and medicines.
The drug supply chain has a number of players that are manufacturers, wholesalers and retailers and has been operating below optimal levels with credit facilities withdrawn due to unavailability of forex to pay for previous orders.
Sections of desperate Zimbabweans have turned to street drugs or online vendors, which are cheap but damaging, as most would not have gone through the evaluation of the quality product by the Zimbabwe Medicines Control Authority.
M & T
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