Zambia to sign Ksh.194B US health pact after resolving differences over data-sharing

Earlier this year negotiations stalled over Zambia's concerns over data privacy and a US attempt to tie the funding to access to critical minerals.

Below ​are more comments by Health Minister Roma Chilengi at a ​press conference:

"The government is pleased to announce that it ⁠will sign the agreement ... on Thursday," Chilengi said

The minister said the ​agreement would see the US provide $1.5 billion in health funding over five ​years, while Zambia would spend $2.1 billion

The US is a major funder of HIV/AIDS, malaria and public health programmes in the Southern African copper-producing nation

Zambia and other ​African nations have had reservations over requests that they share sweeping ​medical data with the US as a condition to receive funds

Chilengi said data-sharing ‌would ⁠be limited to providing information required to monitor and evaluate US-funded health programmes. A clause had been removed that would have required Zambia to share patient medical specimens with the US if requested

On whether ​the US funding ​was conditional on ⁠mining access, he said "there is no mention of critical minerals" in the health pact

Chilengi said he was ​also not aware of a separate critical minerals agreement ​being ⁠negotiated with the US

African countries including Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda have signed similar US health pacts, which are part of the Trump administration's changed ⁠approach ​to foreign aid under which poorer countries ​are meant to transition from aid to self-reliance. Ghana and Zimbabwe rejected deals over data-sharing demands