The country where hospitals were left without essential drugs/ situation has been aggravated by Trump Administration Decisions

Botswana decreed on Monday a sanitary emergency after hospitals were left without essential drugs due to public financing problems and following the reduction of American aid, AFP reports.

This country in southern Africa, rich in diamonds, has largely relied on the mining exploitation for feeding the economy, but faced persistent difficulties that affected its income from precious stones, leaving most of the 2.5 million inhabitants prey to unemployment and high levels of poverty.

President Duma Boko acknowledged on Monday, during a television speech, that the country's supply chain is deficient and has announced an emergency financing of over $ 18 million for the refueling of clinics and hospitals.

The president added that the army monitors the distribution of drugs.

At the beginning of the month, the Ministry of Health spoke about the shortage of drugs against hypertension, cancer, diabetes, tuberculosis, asthma, those for mental and sexual health and said that surgery that is not urgent will be postponed.

The drastic cuts of American aid in the mandate of President Donald Trump aggravated the situation. Prior to these cuts, the United States financed one third of the HIV fight in Botswana, according to UNAIDS, and provided $ 12 million through the World Fund for Malary and Tuberculosis.

The United Nations Children's Agency (UNICEF) said that “an urgent action” is necessary to combat the aggravation of the sanitary crisis.