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The Zambia Federation of Employers (ZFE) has objected to government’s plan to transfer control of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIMA) back to the Ministry of Health (MoH).
Federation’s President, Myra Ngoma, argued that NHIMA should remain within the Ministry of Labour and Social Security as it functions as a social insurer and should not fall under its beneficiary, the MoH.
Ngoma expressed these sentiments in Lusaka during the federation’s 56th Annual General Meeting (AGM) on Friday.
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“Taking NHIMA to the Ministry of Health puts the national health insurance scheme at a high risk,” she stated.
President of the Zambia Congress of Trade Unions, Blake Mulala, claimed that individuals advocating for NHIMA to revert to the Ministry of Health aimed to profit from the scheme through their private pharmacies.
“The reason why drugs are missing in hospitals today is not about NHIMA failing, NHIMA has a funding,” Mulala pointed out.
He also claimed the presence of thieves within the Ministry of Health.
“The challenge we have,” Mulala added, “are thieves and cartels within the Ministry of Health which we as congress are ready to join, fight and trip them out,” he said.
Vice President Mutale Nalumango urged the Zambia Federation of Employers to educate foreign employers and investors about the rights of workers in Zambia.
“When investors come, ZFE must quickly get to them and say this is the way we live here,” she said.
She also recommended that employers prioritize employee safety to promote effective economic and social development.
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