INDIA RELEASES US $18M FOR HEALTH POSTS

By ANNIE ZULU in Chama

THE Indian government has released additional funds amounting to US$18 million towards completion of 650 health posts in Zambia, Health Minister Chitalu Chilufya has disclosed.

Dr Chilufya said Finance Minister Felix Mutati had already signed the loan agreement with the Indian government.

He said Government had set January 30, 2018 as mobilisation date for Muchinga, North Western, Luapula and Northern provinces, where construction of the health posts had stalled.

He disclosed that a new Indian contractor had since been contracted to complete the project.

The minister said this in Chama when he briefed President Edgar Lungu on progress made on the construction of the 650 health posts countrywide.

“We got the resources and the loan was extended by US$18 million by the Indian government and procurement by the Ministry of Health is already advanced…” Dr. Chilufya said.

He said Chama had been allocated 11 health posts out of the total health posts to be constructed.

Dr Chilufya explained that construction had delayed in some provinces because the contractor that was supposed to complete the project was not given counterpart funding, after termination of the actual contractor Angelic’s contract.

He was however confident that with the additional US$18 million, the health posts would be completed.

“The 650 health posts had three contractors and one of the contractors Angelic who was supposed to build in four provinces had their contract terminated. This was because of some suspicions back home in India that the company was involved in some practices that were not in the interest of the Indian government.

“When that contract was terminated, works stalled in North Western, Luapula, Northern and Muchinga. We had to wait for another contractor and resources that were required to extend this contract to another contractor had to be sourced through the same Export Import Bank of India (EXIM) Bank,” he said.