CIAO DATE: 05/2013
August 2012
Zambia’s public health sector (comprising 92% of the health system) operates on half the number of workers suggested by the World Health Organization (WHO), a veritable HRH crisis manifested by the country’s growing burden of both communicable and non-communicable diseases. It is forecasted that with no changes to current training , hiring, and attrition conditions the total number of doctors, clinical officers, nurses, and midwives would decrease to 59% of the minimum necessary staff by 2018. Several health indicators threaten failure to achieve the global health community’s Millennium Development Goals. The health indicators in Zambia remain high: infant mortality rate (69 per 1,000 live births), under-five mortality rate (111 per 1,000 l ive births) , and maternal mortality rate (470 per 100,000 live births) . Equally significant, is Zambia’s high prevalence rate for HIV/AIDS (13.5% among adults aged 15 to 49) 4 and low Human Development Index ranked at 164 (0.430), ranking amongst the worst in the world.
Resource link: Human Resources for Health, Health Worker Migration, and the Role of the UK and the International Community in Zambia [PDF]