A nation’s moral compass is judged by how it protects its most vulnerable. The revelation of a critical infant formula shortage within Botswana’s flagship Prevention of Mother-to-Child Transmission (PMTCT) programme is an unacceptable betrayal of trust that threatens the very foundation of our hard-won public health gains.
For years, we have rightly celebrated our world-class HIV response. The PMTCT programme has been its crown jewel, ensuring HIV-positive mothers could safely nurture their newborns without fear of transmission. Now, a leaked memo exposes a terrifying reality that the lifeline has been frayed to breaking point. A key warehouse in Francistown stands empty, and access is being rationed. Official reassurances about expected consignments ring hollow to a mother at a clinic queue, clutching her infant. In public health, 'soon' is not good enough.
This is more than a stock-out. It is a direct threat to infant lives. Faced with no formula, mothers may resort to mixed feeding, drastically increasing the risk of HIV transmission. This crisis, therefore, risks reversing decades of progress, one tiny life at a time. The government’s calm rhetoric about the situation being under control is profoundly out of touch with the panic and desperation on the ground.
This formula shortage is not an isolated incident. It is the latest symptom of a healthcare system cracking under strain, as seen in drug stock-outs and overstretched clinics. It points to systemic failures in planning, procurement, and, crucially, in honest communication. To insist "all is well" when a warehouse is bare is a dereliction of duty.
We, therefore, call upon Health Minister Dr Stephen Modise and team, in the strongest possible terms, to act immediately and with transparency. First, declare a public health emergency around this shortage and outline a clear, day-by-day plan for replenishment, with regular public updates. Second, launch an urgent investigation into how the procurement and distribution system failed so catastrophically. Those responsible must be held accountable. Third, establish permanent safeguards, including a larger emergency buffer stock, to ensure this can never happen again.
Our nation’s future is literally in the balance. We cannot stand by whilst bureaucratic failure gambles with the lives of Botswana’s newest generation. The government must mobilise every resource, cut every piece of red tape, and fix this now. Our babies’ lives depend on it. Anything less is a shameful abandonment of the promise we made to build a healthier Botswana for all.
