Leaked draft of $1bn memorandum of understanding reveals mandatory targets, sharing of data, and reported access to mining concessions
The US has been accused of “shameless exploitation” over a health financing agreement with Zambia worth more than $1bn (£740m), amid warnings that the country is getting a raw deal from the Trump administration.
A leaked draft of a five-year memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the two countries, seen by the Guardian, reveals that Zambia may accept terms worse than health financing agreements the US has reached with 16 other African countries.
The terms include a commitment to give Washington access to its health data for 10 years – far longer than other countries have negotiated. Zambia’s deal also predicates any health financing on an even more covert arrangement that could open up the country’s mining industry to US interests.
Asia Russell, director of the HIV advocacy organisation Health Gap, said: “These terms are vastly worse than other deals. [The US] is conditioning life-saving health services on plundering the mineral wealth of the country.
