Mozambique keen to have health workers trained in Zim | The Herald Zimbabwe

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Mozambique keen to have health workers trained in Zim | The Herald Zimbabwe

10:51 CAT | 17 Feb 2022

Zimbabwe's Acting President Constantino Chiwenga (left) welcomes Health Minister Armindo Daniel Tiago at Munhumutapa offices in Harare yesterday

Zimbabwe’s standing as a leader in healthcare provision in the region has seen Mozambique declaring its interest to have its specialist health workers trained here, their visiting Minister of Health Armindo Tiago said after paying a courtesy call on Acting President Constantino Chiwenga at his offices yesterday.

Their interest to tap health knowledge from Zimbabwe follows several international plaudits on the way the country’s health system is being transformed as a means of improving people’s livelihoods through universal health coverage of sufficient quality.

This dovetails with the vision of medical tourism, whereby people visit Zimbabwe or seek Zimbabwean specialists for medical care.

Government has indicated that it no longer wants to export patients by having more specialties done locally.

“We can cooperate in the training of health professionals, especially training of specialists that has been taking place before in the early 80s and 90s,” said Minister Tiago. “Some of the orthopaedics in Mozambique were trained in Zimbabwe.

“We want to go back and strengthen that kind of relationship, but also we want to see the possibility of acquiring personal protective equipment in Zimbabwe. Due to the impact of Covid-19, Zimbabwe has been able to produce these locally.”

Minister Tiago said his meeting with Acting President Chiwenga touched on various issues.

“We had a meeting to discuss a lot of issues among which priority for the need for both Mozambique and Zimbabwe to strengthen collaboration in various areas, since I am the minister of health, essentially in the health sector,” he said.

“In the health sector, we are looking at finding opportunities we have in Zimbabwe to see how best we can do collaboration between the two countries going from the donation of oxygen that Zimbabwe is going to donate to Mozambique.

“We will visit various pharmaceutical companies in Zimbabwe to see the possibility of Mozambique acquiring medicines and other goods.”

Zimbabwe’s health system has won a lot of international plaudits, especially its response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Government is revamping health provision systems and facilities towards regional and continental tourist attraction status, a move which dovetails with the 2030 vision of an upper middle income economy.

Prior to the Second Republic, Zimbabweans used to flock to international destinations in search of quality healthcare, but the Government has all but stopped the movement as it upgraded the local health sector, both in terms of resources, a return to proper maintenance of equipment and facilities and improvements in staffing.

At Nyamapanda, some Mozambicans cross the border to get medical assistance at local institutions.

Mozambique has also done very well in the Covid-19 vaccination drive, with around 67 percent of the target population vaccinated.

The demand for local products follows the challenge of local pharmaceutical companies to look beyond their largely retail role and invest in the production of medical consumables, as the Government looks to boost production.

Mozambican Minister of Health, Dr Armindo Tiago accompanied by the Acting Minister of Health and Child Care Prof Amon Murwira visits Natpharm. Mozambique has expressed intrest to buy personal protective equipment which is being manufactured in Zimbabwe @abietembo @MoHCCZim pic.twitter.com/ytmEsItJR7

— ZBC News Online (@ZBCNewsonline) February 17, 2022