By Draxon Maloya
While health workers in Malawi are still complaining of government failure to meet some of the conditions attached to their work in the fight against Covid-19 pandemic, Zimbabwe government has thus week met some of the requirements of the health workers.
On Tuesday, Frontline health workers at Kameza Isolation Centre in Blantyre threatened to let loose Covid-19 patients should the District Health Office (DHO) fail to settle their risk allowance arrears.
Last month epidemiology expert, Titus Divala warned that the country is sitting on a time bomb following the escape of the 441 returnees from the Kamuzu stadium where they were kept for thorough observation.
But while health workers in Malawi are still complaining about government failure to meet their conditions of service, Zimbabwe government this week announced an increase n civil servants salaries in the face of biting economic challenges worsened by the coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic.
Government in Harare through finance minister, Mthuli Ncube announced pay rise on Wednesday of salaries and pensions by 50 percent with immediate effect which will be paid in local currency.
A statement seen by this publication added that all Zimbabwean civil servants will be paid non-taxable Covid-19 allowance of $75 (about Mk56,000) an amount payable in United States (US) dollars.
Meanwhile, the Chinese government has pledged Covid-19 debt relief to African States which is against the World Bank report of 2020 which state that Sub-Saharan Africa will in 2020 suffer its first recession for 25 years due to global health crisis.
The Chinese Embassy commercial and economic counsellor Hudson Wang has disclosed that recently Malawi has been left out of the list of countries to benefit from the Chinese debt because it has not started repaying loans as it is currently within a 10 year concessionary period.
He further added that Malawi only signed it’s first interest-free loan agreement with China in 2011 which means it has up to 2021 to start serving the loan.