THE Resident Doctors Association of Zambia (RDAZ) is urging government to increase health financing to address the resource gap that will be created by the non-renewal of contracts for over 3,500 healthcare workers. The Ministry of Health announced that it would not renew the contracts for more than 3,500 health workers employed under the Ministry of Health/Centers for Disease Control and Prevention cooperative agreement, following uncertainty surrounding United States foreign assistance to Zambia. In an interview, Thursday, RDAZ president Dr Paul Chibwe said these job cuts would create significant gaps in healthcare services, especially in remote areas where workers provide essential services like HIV treatment and testing. Dr Chibwe noted that while government had already planned to recruit 2,000 new...