HARARE – The Government says corrupt tendencies within the health sector will not be tolerated with several initiatives to combat the vice now in place as the second republic moves in to ensure accountability in the sector.
A raft of measures to curtail financial leakages in the health sector has been put in place, with initiatives to reduce the import bill through local production, now coming into effect.
Vice President Retired General Dr Constantino Chiwenga, who officiated at the World Diabetes Day commemorations in Gweru this Thursday, said the measures being put in place are meant to ensure a smooth health delivery system.
“It is about time that we invest in beneficiation initiatives. We have put in place a framework to produce our own drugs locally. Let’s get back to the fundamentals. We cannot continue importing drugs yet we can produce them here. We have also put in place measures to deal with corruption in the health sector. As a country, we need to have affordable medication as this will help us as we move forward.”
The Vice President, who is also the Minister of Health and Child Care earlier on toured Thornhill Primary School, where it was revealed that the John Tallach Secondary School COVID-19 outbreak was traced back to a student who had attended a funeral in South Africa.
Zimbabwe Diabetes Association President, Mr David Leboho urged Zimbabweans to undergo regular medical check-ups.
“The fact that more than half the people who are diabetic are not aware that they are diabetic is a worrying situation as they are at high risk of severe Covid-19 and death hence the need to enhance screening. As an organisation we do not underestimate the need to enhance the areas of diabetes education, awareness, management, monitoring and prevention and so we call for a united response to the efforts we are already making.”
The World Diabetes Day was first commemorated in 1991 in response to growing concerns over the huge diabetes toll.
