Zimbabwe Rejects $350 Million US Health Aid Package Citing Intelligence Overreach & Sovereignty Fears

Zimbabwe has walked away from a proposed $350 million (approx R6.4 billion) health funding agreement with the United States, after President Emmerson Mnangagwa personally directed his government to discontinue negotiations over what Harare describes as a one-sided deal that undermines the country’s sovereignty.

According to Zimlive, the shock decision, communicated in a confidential government letter dated December 23, 2025, has sent ripples through diplomatic circles. It comes as Washington simultaneously pulls the plug on humanitarian funding for the nation, leaving critical health programmes for millions of Zimbabweans hanging in the balance.

‘Lopsided’ Deal Dumped

The memorandum of understanding (MoU) being pushed by Washington was intended to serve as the future framework for US health support to Zimbabwe under its America First Global Health Strategy (AFGHS). However, insiders reveal that the negotiations turned sour when Harare realised the true cost of the cash.

Albert Chimbindi, the secretary for foreign affairs and international trade, communicated the President’s hardline stance to the secretaries of finance and health in a letter seen by ZimLive. According to the document, President Mnangagwa is furious over what he perceives as an attempt to strong-arm the nation.

“The President has directed that Zimbabwe must discontinue any negotiation with the USA on the clearly lopsided MoU that blatantly compromises and undermines the sovereignty and independence of Zimbabwe as a country,” the letter reads.

So, what was so offensive about the deal? Sources indicate that the Americans were demanding direct access to Zimbabwe’s health data over an agreed period. Government insiders viewed this provision not as a transparency measure, but as blatant intelligence overreach.

As if that wasn’t enough, the US separately pushed for access to the country’s critical mineral resources as part of the broader arrangement. This demand confirmed Harare’s worst fears that the health funding was merely a Trojan horse designed to plunder the nation’s rich lithium and platinum deposits.

A Matter of Principle

Harare also objected on principle. The government argued that signing a bilateral health agreement with Washington would be inconsistent with its commitment to multilateralism. This is particularly sensitive given that the United States had withdrawn from the World Health Organisation (WHO) under the Donald Trump administration.

Entering into a parallel bilateral health architecture, the government reasoned, would effectively legitimise Washington’s abrupt exit from the global health order. Zimbabwe views this as a dangerous precedent that could weaken international cooperation on disease control.

Despite Zimbabwe’s resistance, Washington’s health diplomacy offensive is gaining traction elsewhere on the continent. At least 14 African countries have already signed similar agreements under the AFGHS framework, raising questions about whether Harare is isolating itself or standing firm against neo-colonialism.

US Pulls the Plug

The rejection of the MoU comes as Zimbabwe also faces the hammer blow of losing US humanitarian funding. A year after Trump began dismantling the United States Agency for International Development (USAID)—which had funded programmes in Zimbabwe, including the provision of HIV medicines—his administration is now initiating a new round of significant cuts to foreign assistance.

The situation is dire. An internal State Department email, reported by The Atlantic, confirms the worst. It said the US will soon end all humanitarian funding currently provided to seven African nations, including Zimbabwe, as part of a “responsible exit.” Funding in nine others will be redirected.

Aid programmes in all of these countries, previously up for renewal through the end of September, will instead be allowed to expire. Shockingly, each of them is classified as lifesaving by the Trump administration’s own standards.

A chilling February 12 email to officials in the State Department’s Bureau of African Affairs spelt out the rationale. It said the projects in Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Malawi, Mali, Niger, Somalia and Zimbabwe are being cancelled because “there is no strong nexus between the humanitarian response and US national interests.”

The US Embassy in Harare had not responded to a request for comment at the time of publication.