Zambia has pushed back on part of a deal worth more than $1 billion in global health aid from the United States (US) because it does not align with the country’s interests, the government said on Wednesday, as health advocates warned the deal links the money to mining access and has data-sharing risks.
The deal governs more than $1 billion of US funding to tackle conditions like HIV and malaria, as well as improve disease outbreak preparedness and maternal and child health, over the next five years. It also requires around $340 million in co-financing from the Zambian government over the same period, according to a draft of the agreement reviewed by Reuters.
The deal was due to be signed in November, but had been delayed after revised drafts included a problematic section, a Zambian Ministry of Health Spokesperson told Reuters on Wednesday.
That section “did not align with the position and interests of the government of Zambia. We have therefore requested further revisions to the content in question,” the Spokesperson said, declining to elaborate on what the content covered.
–Reuters–
