Zambia is one of the first countries the LCoGS has partnered with to design and implement a contextually-tailored National Surgical and Anesthesia Plan based off the framework developed by the commission. The Zambian Ministry of Health is driving this process during which an overall Technical Working Group with three committees was created: (1) Healthcare Delivery & Infrastructure, (2) Workforce, and (3) Financing, Information Management & Technology.

The planning phase has been ongoing and involved extensive analysis of existing data by Boston’s Program in Global Surgery and Social Change team. Committee-specific meetings commenced mid-March 2016 and will culminate mid-May with a National Surgical and Anesthesia Forum. The Ministry of Health intends to incorporate this National Surgical and Anesthesia Plan into their overarching 5-year Zambian Health Strategic Plan generated for 2017-2021; this will be the first time surgery and anesthesia are included in this report. Ultimately, these efforts will be highlighted during a session at the 69th World Health Assembly in May 2016.