Maravi

(TIMES) Seminars curtailed

Seminars curtailed
State acts to save costs in the Ministry of Health...
By Times Reporter

THE Ministry of Health has suspended the holding of seminars and other non-essential activities to ensure that the delivery of service is not disrupted after some donors withheld US$33 million.

Finance and National Planning Minister, Situmbeko Musokotwane said in Lusaka yesterday that the suspension of seminars and other non-core activities was part of a contingency plan intended to ensure continued delivery of health services in the absence of critical funding.

Dr Musokotwane explained that out of a total amount of $120 million that donors committed for the whole of 2009, about $33 million had been withheld.

“The Government wants the health services to the people to be ring fenced and strengthened using both Government’s own budgetary resources as well as from other cooperating partners who have not suspended aid,” he said.

At a joint media briefing with his Health counterpart, Kapembwa Simbao, Dr Musokotwane said that Sweden and the Netherlands had informed the Government that they had suspended aid following the revelation of possible embezzlement of more than K10 billion.

The Government agreed to engage the embassies of Sweden and Netherlands to understand from them the actions they would like the Government institute beyond the investigations and possible action taken on the culprits once identified.

He said the Ministry of Finance had since provided financial support to the auditor general’s office to conduct the investigations into the alleged theft and that it was still waiting for the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) to submit its budget.

Dr Musokotwane said the Government was also reviewing arrangements of financial management and controls to avoid reccurrence of financial irregularities.

The minister said the suspension of aid would have a negative impact on the Government’s ability to deliver health services to the people.

He said it was not true that the Government was abetting corruption and questioned how possible it was to build houses and a guesthouse seized by the ACC within the six months that President Rupiah Banda had been in office.

He said every ministry had internal auditors who were supposed to look out for such cases and it was sad that the system failed to detect the K10 billion scandal.

Mr Simbao said the most affected following the withholding of donor funding were district hospitals which got about K16 billion out of the total budget of K24 billion in a month.

Mr Simbao said the Government regretted the possible theft of public funds in the health sector whose interventions were at the core of providing basic human needs, especially for the poor.

He said the Ministry of Health would have difficulties in feeding patients, and the fight against malaria, HIV/AIDS and other programmes.

Labels: MINISTRY OF HEALTH, SITUMBEKO MUSOKOTWANE, WORKSHOPS

posted by MrK @ 4:31 PM