By Talent Gondo- Health and Child Care Parliamentary Committee Chairperson Ruth Labode has told parliament that the country is running out of stock of ARVs despite the Health minister’s assurances that the country had adequate stock to last till next year.

She attributed this to failure by government to service its Global Fund contribution which was now almost US$400 million.

Said Labode:

“Three months ago, I raised a point of privilege here in relation to the Global Fund to the effect that if we as Zimbabwe did not pay our contribution to the Global Fund, we would lose the money which was almost to the tune of $400 million.  Right now, I am coming from a meeting with UNICEF where I learnt that the money has not been paid.

Secondly, we are running out of ARVS and there are some drugs that have totally run out and that is something that we really cannot afford.  We urgently require $7 million to procure those drugs.  

The unfortunate thing with ARVS is that if you do not take them for three months, you develop resistance, meaning that now you must go onto a more expensive drug.  So we urgently need to make a move on this.

The team from Geneva came and met with the Minister of Finance and Economic Development.  He committed himself and they even went back and said that if Zimbabwe can deliver on what they have promised, we will increase their allocation to US$600 million. 

There is also the other issue, the implication of the 2% tax.  The Global Fund is exempted from all forms of taxes from every country that is part of the Global Fund which Zimbabwe is.  This includes this new 2% tax, so the payment of this tax by Global Fund entails that they must stop funding Zimbabwe because when we signed and agreed, we said that it shall not be taxed; it is meant for drugs and for Zimbabweans.  It is for everything else except to increase our revenue.

So I think that right now, a Statutory Instrument is required to give effect to this waiver on the Global Fund.  They (Global Fund team) has met the minister who has committed himself to doing it but we need to do it like yesterday.”

Health and Child Care Minister Obadiah Moyo is on record revealing that the country has “adequate supplies of ARVs that could last until 2020”.