Minister of Health Dr Chitalu Chilufya says the church remains the key ally of government in the provision of health services.

Speaking after a private meeting with the catholic bishops at Kapingila house in Lusaka on Tuesday, Dr Chilufya said government would continue to build a relationship with the Catholic Church in order to strengthen the health systems and improve access to service delivery.

“The church remains the key ally of government in the provision of health services. So we will continue building the relationship with the Catholic Church and with all faith based organisations to strengthen our health systems and improve access to service delivery for our people,” he said.

Dr Chitalu said government would work with the church in order to attain the epidemic control of HIV/AIDS by the year 2021.

“As you may be aware that President Edgar Chagwa Lungu announced to the nation that Zambia has shifted policy to routine testing and treating, this information needs to get to the people. And the church is a platform for this information,” said Dr Chilufya.

“So we are working together under the stewardship of president Lungu with the church and ensuring that by the year 2021 we attain epidemic control of HIV/AIDS.”

And conference for Catholic Bishops secretary general Fr Cleophas Lungu noted that the Catholic Church had been a key partner of government in the delivery of health services in the country.

“we welcomed the idea of this dialogue of this engagement because as a church we believed that we have a role to play in the promotion of the wellbeing of the nation, the wellness of our people. When Jesus Christ commissioned his disciple, he told them go and proclaim the Gospel but within that proclamation of the gospel there is a commission to go and heal. We believe that we need to constantly engage government in order to strengthen our partnership in order to improve the levels of collaboration at different levels in the system of delivery of health services,” said Fr Lungu.