HARARE — Hospitals and clinics across Zimbabwe have been supplied with Starlink satellite internet kits under a government connectivity programme, but many are...
HARARE — Hospitals and clinics across Zimbabwe have been supplied with Starlink satellite internet kits under a government connectivity programme, but many are unable to use them because they cannot afford the monthly subscription fees, Parliament heard on Wednesday.
The issue was raised in the National Assembly by Kariba legislator Shine Gwangwaba during oral questions without notice. Gwangwaba told Parliament that although health institutions had received the equipment, many were unable to activate the service due to the cost of maintaining subscriptions.
“Hospitals have been given Starlink kits but they cannot afford to subscribe, they are just keeping them,” Gwangwaba said as he asked what measures the Government was taking to help hospitals meet the recurring costs.
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Earlier in the sitting, Health and Child Care Minister Dr Douglas Mombeshora informed lawmakers that the Government had already installed solar power systems and Starlink internet kits at more than 400 clinics across the country. He said the programme aims to expand connectivity to more than 700 clinics.
Dr Mombeshora acknowledged the financial challenges affecting the rollout and said the Government was engaging Starlink representatives in an effort to reduce subscription costs.
“Indeed, we have received those challenges and we are engaging the agents to lower the subscriptions so that we can pay for all those Starlink kits that we will install,” he told Parliament.
The connectivity programme is intended to improve internet access at health facilities, particularly in rural and remote areas, where reliable communication is essential for healthcare delivery and access to digital health services.
During the debate, Chinhoyi legislator Leslie Mhangwa suggested that the monthly subscription costs should be covered through the Universal Services Fund (USF), which is financed through a telecommunications levy and is already used to improve connectivity in underserved communities.
Mhangwa said the fund currently supports internet services at schools, libraries, digital centres and telecommunications base stations in remote areas and proposed extending similar support to hospitals and clinics.
Responding to the proposal, Information, Communication Technology, Postal and Courier Services Minister Tatenda Mavetera confirmed that the Universal Services Fund currently finances internet subscriptions mainly for digital centres and schools, and only for a period of one year.
“We also need to do the same for hospitals, which I think is worth considering,” Mavetera told Members of Parliament.
She said her ministry would engage the Ministry of Health and Child Care to explore whether hospitals could also benefit from support under the Universal Services Fund, noting that health institutions are currently not covered by the programme.
The proposal, if adopted, could provide a sustainable funding mechanism for internet subscriptions at public health facilities, enabling clinics that already have Starlink equipment installed to begin using the service.
However, no timeline was provided for when discussions between the two ministries would be concluded or when a decision on funding the subscriptions would be made.
The issue highlights the challenge of ensuring that digital infrastructure projects are supported by sustainable operational funding, particularly as the Government continues efforts to improve healthcare services through technology.
