Mozambique: Doctors to decide whether to continue strike at meeting on Friday

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Mozambique: Doctors to decide whether to continue strike at meeting on Friday

8:42 CAT | 15 Aug 2023

FILE - For illustration purposes only. [File photo: Lusa]

The Medical Association of Mozambique (AMM) will hold, on Friday, another general meeting in Maputo to decide on the continuation of the collective strike, ongoing since 10 July, an official source told Lusa on Monday.

“The key point is to discuss whether or not to continue the strike. This is the only item on the agenda,” said association spokesman Napoleão Viola.

Mozambican doctors have been on strike since 10 July, with the observance of minimum services in health units, protesting mainly against salary cuts, within the scope of the application of the new civil service salary scale, and lack of payment of overtime.

According to the AMM spokesperson, no negotiations are currently underway between the government and the profession, although a civil society group and figures of recognised merit are trying to bring the two sides closer together.

“There is no negotiation going on at the moment. Civil society, through work done by the Order of Doctors, which ended up including other civil society organisations and other individuals, is trying to bridge the gap,” the spokesperson stressed.

The doctors’ strike, which began on 10 July, has been extended once, for another 21 days.

Earlier this month, the Mozambican government said that doctors who miss work due to the ongoing strike will be held accountable, claiming that it has already solved most of the problems and announcing the hiring of new professionals.

The AMM, which considers that the problems persist, has labelled the government’s position as intimidation and has submitted a precautionary measure to the Administrative Court.

The application of the new civil service salary scale is being strongly contested by various professional groups, with a record of salary delays and cuts criticised by various segments of the Mozambican state apparatus.

Source: Lusa