Zambia has officially halted negotiations on a proposed $2 billion US health agreement, citing concerns over data privacy and an attempt to link the funding to mineral access. Foreign Minister Mulambo Haimbe revealed that the government opposes “coupling” the five-year health MOU with a separate critical minerals agreement that would grant US companies preferential treatment in Zambia’s mining sector. Haimbe labeled the US demand for sensitive health data “unconscionable” and a violation of citizens’ privacy rights. He maintained that health support must be judged on its own merits, separate from Zambia’s vast copper and cobalt reserves. This standoff follows similar rejections by Ghana and Zimbabwe, who also rebuffed the Trump administration’s “America First” aid model over data-sharing mandates.
CNBC Africa
