Zambia Signs $3.6 Billion Health Deal With United States
Zambia will sign a revised health agreement with the United States after removing contentious clauses regarding the sharing of patient data and medical specimens.
The Government of Zambia will sign a revised five-year health agreement with the United States on Thursday following the resolution of disputes over data privacy. The pact involves $3.6 billion in total funding, with the United States contributing $1.5 billion and Zambia providing $2.1 billion.
Minister of Health Roma Chilengi announced that the revised deal removes clauses that previously required Zambia to share medical specimens and patient health data with the U.S. government. Under the new terms, data sharing is limited to the monitoring and evaluation of U.S.-funded programs. Chilengi further clarified that the agreement contains no requirements regarding access to critical minerals.
The deal is part of an America First policy led by the Trump administration, which replaces the U.S. Agency for International Development with bilateral agreements intended to move African nations toward health self-reliance. While Zambia has reached an accord, other nations including Ghana, Namibia, and Zimbabwe have rejected similar proposals. Officials in those countries expressed concerns that the U.S. would utilize their medical data for research without guaranteeing that the resulting end products would be accessible to the providing nations during future health crises.
