The Central Medical Stores Trust (CMST) says its operations are under strain due to severe funding challenges and huge debts owed by public hospitals, currently estimated at about K60 billion.

Speaking during a visit by the Minister of Health, CMST Chief Executive Officer Chikaiko Chadzunda said the institution is also struggling with foreign exchange shortages, making it difficult to procure and restock essential medicines.

“It is becoming hard to sustain medicine provision when hospitals are not settling their debts and forex is limited,” said Chadzunda.

Minister of Health Madalitso Baloyi acknowledged the challenges and said government, with support from the World Bank and other partners, is mobilizing resources to help clear CMST debts and strengthen medicine supply.

“We are working closely with development partners to ensure CMST has the capacity to deliver essential medicines consistently,” said Baloyi.

Despite the financial difficulties, CMST has reported a significant drop in drug expiries, from K10 billion worth in 2022 (in four years) to about K1 billion in the past two years.

Chadzunda attributed the improvement to a new product movement strategy that prioritizes the purchase of fast-moving medicines and classifies supplies based on their usage rates.

Health rights activist George Jobe has welcomed the progress but urged CMST to aim for zero expiries, saying it is unacceptable for medicines to expire while hospitals continue to face shortages.

According to the Ministry of Health, CMST has reduced drug expiries to below two percent,  a notable milestone in the country’s health supply system.