Zimbabwe halts $350m US health MoU over sovereignty concerns

US Embassy in Harare 

HARARE — Zimbabwe has formally discontinued talks with the United States over a proposed $350 million memorandum of understanding (MoU) on health funding after President Emmerson Mnangagwa directed his government to stop negotiations, government officials say.

A letter dated December 23, 2025, from Albert Chimbindi, secretary for foreign affairs and international trade, instructed the secretaries of finance and health to end discussions on the agreement. The document, seen by local media, quotes the President as saying Zimbabwe must “discontinue any negotiation with the USA on the clearly lopsided MoU that blatantly compromises and undermines the sovereignty and independence of Zimbabwe as a country.”

Key objections cited by Harare

Zimbabwe’s government rejected the MoU on several grounds:

• Data access concerns: The United States sought direct access to Zimbabwe’s health data over an agreed period, a provision Harare described as an intelligence overreach.

• Resource access: Washington reportedly pushed for access to Zimbabwe’s critical mineral resources as part of the broader arrangement.

• Multilateralism principle: Zimbabwe argued that a bilateral health architecture with the US would be inconsistent with its commitment to multilateral institutions, noting Washington’s earlier withdrawal from the World Health Organization under the Trump administration. Harare said entering a parallel bilateral framework would effectively legitimise that exit.

Despite Zimbabwe’s decision, the US America First Global Health Strategy (AFGHS) has secured similar agreements with other African states; at least 14 countries on the continent have signed comparable pacts, according to public reporting.

Aid context and potential impact

The MoU was intended as the framework for future US health support to Zimbabwe under the AFGHS. The decision to halt negotiations comes amid broader shifts in US foreign assistance: internal US State Department communications reported in international media indicate planned reductions or reallocation of humanitarian funding to several African countries, with Zimbabwe among those affected.

An internal State Department email cited by international outlets said projects in Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Malawi, Mali, Niger, Somalia, and Zimbabwe would be cancelled because “there is no strong nexus between the humanitarian response and US national interests.” The US Embassy in Harare had not responded to requests for comment at the time of publication.

Zimbabwe’s formal rejection of the MoU closes the door on the specific bilateral framework proposed under AFGHS but leaves open other channels of international cooperation. Government officials and development partners will need to assess the implications for ongoing health programmes and humanitarian support, and whether alternative multilateral arrangements can be strengthened to meet Zimbabwe’s public‑health needs.

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