Zimbabwe blames sanctions for collapse

Zimbabwe's Ministry of Health and Child Welfare has admitted that shortages of drug supplies - a consequence of economic sanctions against the southern African country - are endangering the lives of thousands of people, many of whom are resorting to sharing anti-retroviral drugs.

Edwin Muguti, Zimbabwe's Deputy Minister of Health and Child Welfare, testified at hearings of the country's Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Health about the desperate situation for many people. He told the Harare Herald, "sanctions kill," adding that "it is not, and never has been, a question of unwillingness on our part to supply anti-retrovirals. But it is a question of availability; it is a question of money. We are unable as a country to supply all the goods and services that we should be supplying." An estimated 25,000 people are dependent on the state-funded HIV/AIDS drug program.

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