Zimbabwe’s Health Services board confirmed that the chief executives and several directors at five state hospitals were dismissed as the government tries to prop up is struggling public health system in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic and other challenges.
The move is an attempt to improve “operational efficiency, effectiveness, accountability”, according to Health Services Board chair Paulinus Sikhosana who spoke to state broadcaster ZBC.
The state hospitals are located in the cities of Harare and Bulawayo
“It is part of a restructuring exercise within the ministry,” he said.
The country’s public health sector, which also had to deal with a surge in malaria cases, is in a crisis having been hit by a number of strikes last year due to demands for better pay and working conditions.
The health sector also faces perennial shortages of drugs and basic equipment.
Majority of Zimbabweans who are unable to afford private health care rely on state hospitals. However, wealthy people have the ability to go to South Africa or Asia to seek medical attention.
The sacking of the executives and directors comes hot on the heels of the dismissal of Health minister Obadiah Moyo by President Emmerson Mnangagwa in the wake of claims of corruption regarding a deal to procure coronavirus test kits.
