THE United States government has announced that it will slash K1.4 billion (US$50 million) worth of medical aid to Zambia following what it described as continued large scale theft of life saving drugs meant to be distributed to citizens for free.
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Speaking at a press briefing in Lusaka today, US Ambassador to Zambia Michael Gonzales said the decision was prompted by the Zambian government’s failure to take meaningful action against those stealing American donated medications and supplies from the public health system.
“We are no longer willing to underwrite the personal enrichment of fraudsters or the corrupt when patients go without or have to buy life-saving medications that we have provided for free, and the Zambian government does not take action to enforce meaningful accountability or introduce systemic reforms to ensure the resources that belong to the people actually reach them,” said Gonzales.
The US$50 million cut affects critical medications used to treat HIV, malaria and tuberculosis (TB), among others and comes from a broader US$128 million annual US health support package.
Gonzales revealed that since 2021, the US had uncovered widespread theft of these medicines across Zambia.
He added that a US led investigation visited more than 2,000 pharmacies and found that 95 percent were selling stolen medications, nearly half of which were supplies the US had donated to Zambia for free distribution.
“Across all ten provinces, nearly half of the pharmacies selling US provided drugs were selling stolen medicines,” said Gonzales.
“We alerted the Zambian government, offered help and asked for real action. Instead, we got silence and half hearted arrests of low level individuals.”
He said despite more than 33 high level meetings and ongoing pressure from the US government, Zambia had failed to pursue those at the top of the supply chain responsible for the theft.
He also criticised the lack of results from a forensic audit into the Zambian Medicines and Medical Supplies Agency (ZAMMSA), calling the year long process “invisible” and “inconclusive.”
Gonzales stated that this aid cut was not part of the Trump administration’s broader foreign aid review, but a direct response to theft and mismanagement in Zambia.
However, the US will continue delivering medical supplies until January 2026 to give the Zambian government time to plan for a transition, after which the cut will take effect.
“Zambia’s future remains important to us. But we will no longer fund fraud while Zambians die or pay for medicine that should be free,” he said.
He urged government to act decisively to protect not just donor resources, but the lives of ordinary Zambians who depend on them.
By Catherine Pule
Kalemba, May 8, 2025
