LUSAKA, Zambia — The U.S. government and Zambia signed a health financing deal on Thursday after agreeing to remove specimen-sharing and patient-data clauses that had stalled the conclusion of the pact.
The Zambian government also said that the deal does not contain any clauses linked to the country’s abundant mineral resources, which will be negotiated separately.
Zambia is Africa’s second-largest copper producer and there were concerns that the U.S. would try linking its health pact with the country to its natural minerals.
The U.S. State Department said the deal is worth a total of $2.49 billion, with the U.S. contributing $1.52 billion and Zambia investing $975 million into its health system over the next five years.
The amount is somewhat less than the $3.6 billion mooted by Zambian officials earlier this week.
The deal is part of the Trump administration’s America First Global Health Strategy after it dismantled the U.S. Agency for International Development, once the world’s largest humanitarian donor.
The new agreements aim to commit African nations to gradually increase spending on health services while the U.S. gradually phases out its assistance.
Chargé d’Affaires at the U.S. Embassy in Lusaka, Mich Coker, said the partnership was also about shared security and prosperity.
“Infectious diseases know no borders. A strong Zambian health system serves as a first line of defense for both our nations and for the broader region. By helping Zambia detect and respond to outbreaks quickly, we are protecting Americans as well as Zambians,” he said.
Zambian Minister of Health Roma Chilengi said the agreement would support the recruitment of 40,000 healthcare workers over the next five years, and that the deal did not contain any clauses that would compromise Zambia’s security through data sharing.
“The Government will not be sharing any specimens with the United States because we removed all those aspects that raised concerns,” he said.
Chilengi also dismissed suggestions that the deal was tied to the country’s mineral wealth, particularly critical minerals.
He said no such clause existed, even in the original draft.
“As Ministry of Health, we never ever saw any MoU that speaks to minerals. There was no mention at all of any other MoU,” he said.
“We did hear of those conversations in the public, but the contentious matters that were there were about specimen sharing and data protection.”
In 2025, the United States announced that it was withdrawing $50 million in annual aid to Zambia’s health sector over what it described as “systemic theft” of donated medicines and medical supplies.
Last week, the government fired all 150 workers at the Zambia Medicines and Medical Supplies Agency, which is responsible for the distribution of medicines and medical supplies across the country.
The U.S. has signed health data and specimen-sharing agreements with at least nine African nations, committing them to send data and specimens within five days of a request, according to agreements published by the U.S. State Department.
The U.S. says it can then give the health data and specimens to up to 10 American “non-government entities” to develop diagnostics and medical treatments.
Some African countries, including Zimbabwe, Ghana and Namibia, have rejected the proposed health deals with the U.S
Zimba writes for the Associated Press.
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