During his two day visit in Matabeleland North, Zimbabwean President Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa donated tonnes of coal to 5 hospitals in an effort to help with hospital operations.
In total, 2 000 tonnes of coal was donated to 5 Matabeleland North Hospitals. When shared, Mpilo Central Hospital received 800 tonnes, Victoria Falls Hospital received 400 tonnes, St Luke’s Hospital also got 400 tonnes. The remaining two hospitals, The United Bulawayo Hospital and The Ingutsheni Central Hospital both received 200 tonnes each.
The coal will largely help these hospitals cook efficiently for all the patients admitted and will release strain on a number of energy related Hospital operations.
In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, Matabeleland North Provincial Affairs and Devolution Minister Richard Moyo noted that the donation would go a long way in improving service delivery at health institutions.
Before handing over the coal to Mpilo Hospital, Mr Moyo spoke on behalf of the President and said, “It is my hope that this gesture by His Excellency President Emmerson Mnangagwa is an assurance of the commitment by the new dispensation to see efficiency in the health service delivery. I call upon all of us to take our collective responsibilities as hard-working people to achieve that.”
“This is the fulfilment of the intervention he made during his two-day working visit to Matabeleland North ,where he made a donation of 2 000 tonnes for use in five referral hospitals. I urge all of us to strictly adhere to the containment regulations as guided by His Excellency as all of us have a duty to curb the spread of Covid-19,” continued Mr Moyo.
On the same note, Mpilo acting chief executive officer Professor Solwayo Ngwenya appreciated the gesture made by the President and said the donation had helped the public institution cut a lot of costs also mentioning how coal is a vital commodity to Hospitals.
“Coal is quite a vital component of our function as a hospital and this will last us for the whole year.”
“Coal is vital in our operation as we use it for cooking, heating and running our laundry that we use for emergency operations. So, without coal the hospital can be crippled, operations can be suspended putting lives of people at risk hence coal is a vital commodity,” concluded Proff Ngwenya.
