Zambia Strengthens Health Financing and Accountability in Engagement with ALMA Delegation
The Acting Minister of Health, Hon. Cornelius Mweetwa, today hosted a high-level breakfast meeting with the African Leaders Malaria Alliance (ALMA) delegation, currently on an in-country mission to Zambia.
Hon. Mweetwa welcomed the delegation and expressed appreciation for ALMA’s sustained partnership and commitment to bolstering Zambia’s health systems.
Speaking at the event, the Acting Minister highlighted that Zambia, like many African nations, faces a complex health landscape shaped by financing gaps, climate variability, emerging disease patterns, urbanisation, and environmental transformation. He stressed the need for coordinated, accountable, and sustainable approaches to health financing.
Two key initiatives were highlighted: the development of a Sustainability Financing Plan and the piloting of the Big Push Accountability and Monitoring Framework. These measures aim to ensure that malaria and essential health services are financed predictably, sustainably, and in alignment with Zambia’s National Development Plans and public finance reforms.
Hon. Mweetwa emphasised that investments in malaria are not merely vertical expenditures but strategic contributions to strengthening the broader health system, including surveillance, supply chains, laboratories, community health structures, and service delivery platforms.
He also called for strong multisectoral collaboration across Ministries such as Finance, National Planning, Local Government, Environment, Agriculture, and Infrastructure, as well as the private sector.
Minister of Water and Sanitation, Hon. Collins Nzovu, reiterated the critical role of water, sanitation, and hygiene in preventing malaria and cholera. Ms. Jay Phumaphi, Executive Secretary of ALMA, commended the Zambian Government’s commitment to accountability and sustainable health financing.
Concluding the meeting, Hon. Mweetwa reaffirmed the Ministry’s commitment to practical, implementable outcomes, stating, “Our objective is not to produce documents alone, but to strengthen systems, improve efficiency, and secure long-term resilience for our health sector.”
