HARARE — Zimbabwe’s senior doctors have urged the government to reopen talks with the United States after negotiations over a proposed bilateral health funding agreement collapsed, warning that the abrupt loss of American support could carry serious human costs.
The United States embassy in Harare said on Tuesday it was winding down health assistance to Zimbabwe after President Emmerson Mnangagwa ordered officials to withdraw from the negotiations on a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) which promised $367 million in support.
The Zimbabwe College of Public Health Physicians (ZCPHP), the country’s leading professional body for public health specialists, said the timing of the breakdown was particularly worrying given Zimbabwe’s continued reliance on external funding for key components of its health system.
“An abrupt discontinuation of such support could risk treatment interruption, increased transmission, the emergence of drug resistance, and additional strain on the health system,” the College warned in a statement.
The ZCPHP said critical pillars of Zimbabwe’s HIV response including antiretroviral medicines, laboratory commodities, disease surveillance systems and supply-chain support remain heavily dependent on external financing, particularly from United States government programmes such as the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR).
While acknowledging progress made by the government in recent years, the College cautioned against a sudden withdrawal of support. Zimbabwe has recruited more nurses and frontline health workers, strengthened primary healthcare delivery and achieved the UNAIDS 95:95:95 HIV targets.
“These gains reflect strong national leadership, sustained domestic commitment and years of effective collaboration with development partners,” the ZCPHP said, adding that dismantling the funding architecture without a managed transition risked reversing hard-won advances.
The doctors urged both governments to re-engage constructively, arguing that many of the contentious issues were technical rather than ideological.
“Concerns around data governance and implementation frameworks can often be addressed through technical clarification and negotiated safeguards,” the College said, offering to provide independent technical expertise to support renewed talks.
“Health financing transitions are most effective when they are predictable, phased and technically supported,” it added.
The intervention drew a sharp rebuke from President Mnangagwa’s spokesman, George Charamba, who accused the doctors of overstepping their mandate.
“What they have done is to injudiciously pronounce themselves in respect of a matter which is beyond their knowledge base,” Charamba said. “If they have anything constructive to give, they must do it through their parent ministry.”
Government officials say the proposed memorandum of understanding (MoU), promoted by Washington as the future framework for US health assistance under its America First Global Health Strategy, was unacceptable to Zimbabwe.
According to Foreign Affairs and International Trade Secretary Albert Chimbindi, Mnangagwa “directed that Zimbabwe must discontinue any negotiation with the USA on the clearly lopsided MoU that blatantly compromises and undermines the sovereignty and independence of Zimbabwe.”
Officials said the agreement would have granted the United States extensive access to Zimbabwe’s health data over an agreed period, a provision Harare viewed as an intelligence overreach. The US offer also linked health cooperation to access to critical mineral resources.
Government spokesman Ndavaningi Mangwana said Zimbabwe valued its long-standing relationship with the United States but insisted any partnership must be equitable.
“At its core, the arrangement was asymmetrical,” Mangwana said. “Zimbabwe was being asked to share its biological resources and sensitive health data with no corresponding guarantee of access to medical innovations such as vaccines, diagnostics or treatments that might result from that data.”
“This is not a rejection of partnership,” he added, “but an insistence that partnership be genuine.”
The ZCPHP framed the dispute as more than a bilateral issue, warning that weakening Zimbabwe’s health system could have regional and global implications.
“A stable health system in Zimbabwe contributes to broader efforts to prevent and contain infectious diseases,” the College said.
“Sustained cooperation, grounded in mutual respect and a shared commitment to public health, remains the most prudent path forward.”
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