Health boost for farm workers

agricultural workers in general.
“Gamas’s main objective is to promote wellness in agriculture. This will create healthy workers in the agriculture industry who will produce more for the country. I am sure we are all aware that a healthy worker is a highly productive one,” he said.
Mr Kandlela said the medical society was born out of the transformation of Grainmed Medical Aid Society (GrainMed), which used to cover Grain Marketing Board employees and their beneficiaries only.
GrainMed resumed operations in July 2007 with 3 174 members and more than 10 000 beneficiaries.
Mr Kandlela said the transformation of Grainmed to Gamas was approved at the society’s annual general meeting held in Harare recently.
“Members approved at our AGM that we extend cover to people in the agriculture industry under two special funds, namely Grainmed and Agricultural Medical Fund (Agrimed). Grainmed continues to cover GMB employees and their beneficiaries only while Agrimed is covering agricultural people in Zimbabwe,” said Mr Kandlela.
He said farmers and all agricultural workers in general were free to access the five medical aid packages that were being offered by Agrimed. These are Agrimed Platinum, Agrimed Gold, Agrimed Diamond, Agrimed Silver and Agrimed Bronze. These packages, said Mr Kandlela, will meet every type of worker and every size of pocket in the entire agriculture industry.
He added that the society was also offering “medical aid with funeral cash benefit”, a concept that enables a member to pay subscriptions which will give him/her two benefits — access to medical treatment and related benefits plus funeral cover in the case of death.
Meanwhile, Gamas managing diretor Mr Jabulani Dhlakama said the response by the agriculture industry in Zimbabwe was overwhelming. “Our target market includes the entire agricultural market in Zimbabwe, that is horticulture, general farming, aqua (fisheries and crocodiles), timber and plantations as well as wildlife.
“Gamas has managed to gain a foothold in the agricultural sector with the capturing of the agricultural training colleges under Agrimed’s student farmer package. The society’s goal for the next 12 months is to drive membership in the agricultural industry upwards starting with the student farmer package,” Mr Dhlakama said.
He added Gamas was supporting the agriculture industry’s HIV and Aids policy launched in 2006 by Agriculture, Mechanisation and Irrigation Development Minister Joseph Made.
With healthcare funding, said Mr Dhlakama, the dream of managing HIV and Aids challenges will be realised.