….. Import bill too high
Brighton Chiseva
MASVINGO –Minister of Higher and Tertiary Education, Science and Technology Development Professor Amon Murwira recently said Zimbabwe cannot even manufacture crutches, thereby directly increasing the import bill.
Murwira was speaking at the laying of the foundation stone by President Emmerson Mnangagwa at Great Zimbabwe University (GZU) Simon Mazorodze School of Medical and Health Sciences in Masvingo.
Murwira said the Simon Mazorodze School of Medicine was a step in the right direction in implementing Education 5.0 saying they need to invest in biochemical engineering so that Zimbabwe could produce its own medicines.
“We have been training clinicians who just cram the names of medicines we import from somewhere. We have a high import bill because we do not even have crutch manufacturing plant in Zimbabwe,” said Prof Murwira
He went on to say complains by health personnel in Zimbabwe is a clear sign that Zimbabwe is not producing.
“Our nurses and doctors are always complaining that they do not have enough resources or drugs in their workplaces. This is a clear sign that we are not producing and we cannot get enough by importing,” Prof Murwira added.
He however went on to thank President Mnangagwa for the support his government gave towards the construction of the facility that he said was almost complete and would soon invite him for the official opening.
On his part Mnangagwa said establishment of the medical school was a leap forward for the province and Zimbabwe saying it will contribute a lot in the attainment of universal access to health for the people of Zimbabwe.
“This infrastructure is a giant leap forward and will not benefit only the university, but the province as well and the nation as a whole. Such infrastructure helps in our quest to attain universal coverage. This will in turn improve access to hospitals and health care by our respective communities,” said Mnangagwa.
He also said it formed a strong bedrock for the education 5.0 that focuses on the delivery of a higher and tertiary education system that generates knowledge for the production of goods and services to propel innovation, modernisation and industrialisation.
The medical school is said to be at 95 percent completion and a few touch ups remain for it to be commissioned.
Also present was Dr Simon Mazorodze’s widow Alice Mazorodze.
