Editor in Chief: Moh. Reza Huwaida Friday, March 29th, 2024

Ghani Orders 3 Health Departments to Merge

Ghani Orders  3 Health  Departments to Merge

KABUL - President Ashraf Ghani in a decree ordered three departments of the Afghan Ministry of Health to merge and be placed under the National Medicine & Health Products Regulatory Authority (NMHRA) so they report on their activities to the Administrative Office of the President (AOP).
Based on an official letter issued by the Independent Administrative Reform and Civil Service Commission (IARCSC), in the new structure of the Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) the department of policy should be dissolved and 14 more departments-- including the legal advisory board of the ministry--should be either dissolved, amended or merged with other entities.
“The President asked the leadership of the Ministry of Public Health to suggest a reform agenda in Afghanistan’s health system,” said Wahid Majroh, acting Minister of Public Health.
Meanwhile, Integrity Watch Afghanistan (IWA) said that the transfer of specialized affairs to the AOP will lead to the politicization of the executive issues.
“Executive and specialized oversight functions should be handled by the Ministry of Public Health, the administrative office of the president should only undertake the work of coordination between the Presidential Palace and the institutions,” said Naser Taimoori, an IWA member.
“In the structure of the government, the AOP does not have the authority to take control of budget affairs from the ministries,” said political analyst Eshaq Atmar.
Over the past two years, several entities and independent departments have been merged or brought under the oversight of the AOP. (TOLO NEWS)