Africa-Press – Lesotho. The Minister of Health Hon. Motlatsi Maqelepo envisages the Ministry of Health (MoH) as the best performing Ministry. This he said on Thursday in Quthing at the launch of mobile devices which will be used for monitoring
and surveillance of COVID-19 patients at community level. The Minister made resolve to ensure the Ministry’s optimal output. “We don’t have reason to be the best performing Ministry,” he said, adding that his Ministry
is the most financially supported than all others. The MoH has oftentimes come under fire from the disgruntled public health users who complain about alleged ill treatment at the hands of some health professionals.
The patients also lament overcrowding and long waiting hours at both government clinics and hospitals before seeing the Doctor. He sternly highlighted the case in which they found a clinic in Thaba-Tseka closed at
1500hrs before the official closing time, he came down hard on the alleged
workers who had compromised working hours. The Minister however did not say if the disciplinary actions were taken against those alleged health workers’
misconduct. Maqelepo also promised to rope in the District Administrators (DAs), Councilors and Chiefs for improved health services provided by the government facilities.
This is in tune with the much talked about Local Government Act decentralisation policy. The policy wherein the government systems will be coordinated at the districts and
community councils. Meanwhile at the same event, the Village Health Workers (VHWs) erupted with a Harena matla, a chorus which in essence is about seeking higher power intervention.
He also said that the MoH will settle the outstanding stipends of the village health workers. The Minister further mentioned that the cabinet has approved the remunerations of VHWs,
which is M800 per month. He said currently the Ministry is compiling the lists of the outstanding stipends, a process which he said will be over by the end of
October so that payments could be processed “soon”. The VHWs had been working at communities since the late 1970s. The programme was borne following Lesotho’s adoption of the 1978 Alma Ata
Declaration Article VI on the importance of the Primary Health Care (PHC). Some of the roles performed by the VHWs are provision of basic first aid, supporting and
encouraging people on chronic medication, assistance to those in need of palliative care and advocacy of healthy lifestyle through Lipitso (public gatherings) and door to door campaigns.
Notably, the earlier report as at February 28th this year, of the Global Fund, which is an international organization and Lesotho’s one of the main development partners in the fight against HIV/AIDS and Tuberculosis, has
flagged some discrepancies within the MoH and the government. Titled Global Fund Grants in the Kingdom of Lesotho, the report reads: “The Government of Lesotho (GoL) has failed to meet several
of its commitments … and investments in Human Resources for Health. ” “Frequent leadership changes in particular at the levels of the Minister and Principal
Secretary for Health, have impacted policy making and the implementation…, including the fulfillment of financing commitments. “This has contributed to ongoing challenges … to operate effectively and provide adequate oversight
of grant implementation,” reads the report in pertinent part. The MoH is the highest budget-allocated Ministry, with this fiscal year, 2020-2021 having received a lion’s share of over M3 billion of the M21.9 billion national budget.
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