Government has launched the Health Resilience Fund (HRF) which seeks to accelerate progress towards achieving Universal Health Coverage (UHC), Minister of Health and Child Care (MoHCC) and Vice President Constantino Chiwenga has said.
The Fund with a budget of approximately USD 90 million will focus on three health pillars: ending preventable maternal, newborn, child, and adolescent deaths; global health security; and health systems strengthening under the coordination of the MoHCC with support from WHO, UNFPA, and UNICEF.
Speaking during the launch, Chiwenga emphasized on the importance of collaboration in the achievement of UHC.
“As the name suggest the HRF is designed to ensure resilient and sustainable health system. The challenges and lessons learnt were critically analyzed to come up with health interventions which consider scarcity of resources and the need for improved efficiency in our programming. The government remains focused on achieving the highest standard of health care and quality of life possible for all its citizens,” said Chiwenga.
The United Nations Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Zimbabwe, Edward Kallon said the fund will impact positively on other sectors.
“The HRF and the result of partnerships among partners, will also impact positively on other sectors, Education, WASH, gender equality and equity, job creation, thus enabling the achievement of other SDGs, including strengthening the resilience of the people of Zimbabwe,” said Kallon.
European Union Ambassador to Zimbabwe, Jobst von Kirchmann, highlighted that “The EU committed USD45 million towards the HRF. A healthy population is the engine of a country’s economy.”
Speaking on behalf of WHO Zimbabwe Country Representative Professor Jean-Marie Dangou, Dr Lincoln Charimari (Emergencies Incident Manager) said the organisation is committed to support the country in achieving Universal Health Coverage.
“WHO remains committed to support Zimbabwe to achieve UHC. The HRF and new strategies are timely interventions that will significantly contribute towards building sustainable and resilient health systems which can adequately respond to public health emergencies and ensure health security.” said Professor Jean-Marie Dangou.
