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Zambia has committed a total of US$12 million to expand access to reproductive health supplies, the government announced at the 79th World Health Assembly in Geneva on May 22, 2026.
The commitment includes US$7.5 million for reproductive health supplies and an additional US$4.5 million for last-mile distribution to ensure supplies reach women in remote areas.
In a statement issued in Lusaka on Saturday, Dr. Kennedy Lishimpi, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Health, said reproductive health commodities were not donor commodities, but were essential health commodities that should be financed, managed, and delivered as part of the national health system.
Lishimpi said the pledge builds on US$11.5 million already invested by the Government through the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) supplies compact between 2023 and 2025 and the broader Universal Health Coverage agenda.
Zambia is one of six countries scaling up domestic investment in contraceptives and life-saving maternal and newborn health commodities alongside Ethiopia, Ghana, Honduras, Nigeria, and Senegal.
The announcements come as global funding cuts to women’s health programmes are projected to leave a US$185 million gap in contraceptive funding alone in 2026.
“This progress is not accidental, it is the result of courageous political will, and tonight we celebrate the leaders in this room who have transformed that political will into action,” said Pio Smith, UNFPA Deputy Executive Director for Programmes.
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Eight countries pledged over US$175 million to expand access to contraceptives and life-saving reproductive, maternal and newborn health supplies.
The commitments will be matched dollar for dollar by UNFPA through the UNFPA Supplies Partnership Match Fund and Maternal and Newborn Health Commodities Accelerator.
The funding is intended to prevent maternal deaths, unintended pregnancies, and newborn complications.
“Every day more than 700 women die from preventable complications during pregnancy and childbirth, according to UNFPA,” reads the statement.
UNFPA said the commitments should now translate into action to strengthen procurement, regulatory, and service delivery systems.
“UNFPA will continue to work with governments to ensure supplies reach women and girls across more than 150 countries and territories,” it said.
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