The Auditor General has revealed that 77 deceased health workers remained on the Ministry of Health payroll for periods of up to 12 months, resulting in irregular salary payments amounting to K5.79 million.
According to the 2025 Auditor General’s Report, payroll records showed delays of between one and 12 months in removing the officers after their deaths, despite public service rules allowing salary payments to be terminated when an officer dies.
Of the total amount, K5.71 million was linked to 76 deceased officers in Lusaka, while one officer at Ministry headquarters accounted for a further K75,721.
The report does not state who ultimately received the money paid during the delayed payroll removals.
The finding raises questions about payroll controls in the Ministry of Health and how deceased public workers could remain active on Government systems for months before being removed.
The Auditor General classified the K5,790,691 paid during the delays as irregular expenditure.