UPND: Building a healthy nation

Zambia has some of the worst health indicators in the world. Why? Because government has failed to prioritise healthcare for the majority. Whereas the PF promised to spend 15% of the national budget on health in their manifesto, under President Lungu the share has fallen to as little as 8.3%.

Is it possible for Zambia to do better? Absolutely, just compare our performance to that of Botswana. We have an under-5 mortality rate of 75 per 1,000 live births, more than double that of Botswana’s 36. Our maternal mortality of 398 per 100,000 live births is nearly three times that of Botswana’s 140.

How can we do better? The UPND will build a healthy nation by re-allocating funds to critical areas that are fundamental to the wellbeing of our nation, such as water and sanitation. Our people are still dying from treatable diseases on a daily basis because they cannot access clean water; compounds are hotbeds for cholera outbreaks, while in the rural areas people are sharing water with livestock because there is no alternative.

The UPND plans to raise the standard of care through supporting healthcare workers and bringing care closer to communities through extension services by environmental health technicians and telemedicine.

Additionally, as a government that plans ahead we will support disease prevention measures and undertake preparatory measures for responding to epidemics.

To ensure we have the resources we need to achieve our plans we will tackle corruption and cut spending on wasteful items, such as frequent by-elections and big budget international travel seen under the PF. We will also re-evaluate the amount spent on VIP healthcare abroad, which was recently revealed to total an average of K3.6 million per person.

Under our watch spending on health will be for the benefit of the majority, not just a few well-connected individuals, because building a healthy nation is a key stepping stone on the path to a united, prosperous and equitable Zambia.

Hakainde Hichilema
UPND President