Zimbabwe govt admits medicines stolen from public hospitals

The Government has introduced a medicine tracking system to curb the theft of drugs from public hospitals and their alleged resale through private pharmacies.

Deputy Health Minister Sleiman Kwidini told Parliament on Wednesday that significant amounts of Government money were being lost through leakages in the public medicine supply chain.

He said some medicines purchased by Government were allegedly being stolen from public health institutions and diverted for resale.

"Government is losing a lot of money through leakages. After buying medication, people steal medication from hospitals for resale in their pharmacies," Kwidini said.

The Deputy Minister said the Health Ministry had engaged a company to install a tracking system covering the movement of medicines from the National Pharmaceutical Company (NatPharm) to hospitals, as well as the officials responsible for receiving and dispensing the drugs.

"We now have a tracking system that we have installed," he said.

Kwidini warned that the new system would expose individuals involved in the diversion of medicines and could result in prosecutions.

"In the near future, you will note that there are some who are going to come; whether they are in this august House or outside, they will be coming to negotiate on behalf of their relatives who would have been ensnared by the system and will be facing prosecution," he said.

He said investigations had pointed to possible networks operating along the medicine distribution chain.

"Some have cartels from NatPharm to hospitals. So, the tracking system that I am talking about is going to identify where the leakage happened," Kwidini said.

The Deputy Minister also said the Government was moving to address potential conflicts of interest involving health workers who operate pharmacies near public hospitals.

He said the Ministry had engaged the Medicines Control Authority of Zimbabwe (MCAZ) over the issue.

"At the beginning of the week, we had a meeting with the Medicines Control Authority of Zimbabwe to discuss that those who work in hospitals cannot open businesses where they sell medication next to the hospital because there is a conflict of interest," Kwidini said.

He added that MCAZ was working on regulations to address the matter.

"As I am speaking, the Medicines Control Authority of Zimbabwe is in the process of promulgating such a law," he said.

The disclosure came after lawmakers raised concerns over persistent medicine shortages at public hospitals and allegations that drugs supplied to State institutions were being diverted to private pharmacies.

The tracking system is expected to allow authorities to identify points at which medicines go missing and establish those responsible for any diversion along the supply chain.

Government's move comes amid continued concerns over medicine availability in public health facilities and the management of scarce pharmaceutical resources.