Africa

Zimbabwe is testing a national telemedicine project

By Staff Writer

July 25, 2018

The aim of the project is to improve the coverage of rural areas with quality health services.

The Government of Zimbabwe is currently testing a national telemedicine project. 12 health facilities are mobilized. These are the Mt Mellaray, Nyafaro, Ngorima, Nyahode, Nyanyadzi, Chakohwa, Avila, Fombe, Nyatate, Muchadziya, Tombo and Chimanimani clinics that have been linked to Nyanga and Mutambara Mission District and Mutare and Parirenyatwa Reference Hospitals. 

According to the Ministry of Information and Communication Technologies and Cyber ​​Security, the national telemedicine project is jointly funded by the Universal Service Fund managed by the Zimbabwe Post and Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (POTRAZ) – to which telecom operators contribute 3% of their annual revenue – and the International Telecommunication Union (ITU). Its realization is theirs, as well as the telecom regulator and the Ministry of Health and Child Protection. 

The National Experimental Telemedicine Project is an ambition of Zimbabwe’s National Health Strategy (2016-2020), which aims for universal coverage of the population in quality health services in order to reduce the impact of communicable and non-communicable diseases on health. the development of the country. In Zimbabwe, you still have to travel long distances to get access to a specialist doctor. With telemedicine, this distance will no longer be a problem.