Overview

• President Duma Boko ordered the military to lead an emergency distribution drive, with the first convoys departing Gaborone for remote districts.
• The finance ministry approved 250 million pula for immediate procurement to replenish essential medicines and clinical supplies.
• The health ministry has suspended non-urgent surgeries and reported nationwide shortages affecting treatments for hypertension, cancer, diabetes, tuberculosis, asthma, sexual health and mental health, as well as dressings and sutures.
• Authorities disclosed roughly 1 billion pula owed to private facilities and suppliers and cited inflated procurement prices along with losses in existing distribution systems.
• UNICEF called for urgent action and highlighted high child underweight rates in a western district near the Namibian border, warning of broader impacts on child health.