July 1, 2009 

Relief agencies in Zimbabwe are continuing emergency operations in response to the country’s cholera outbreaks and desperate need for food and medical care.

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), who has been working in Zimbabwe for almost 30 years, reported that since the beginning of 2009 there has been a clear shift towards emergency operations. Officials reported that the cholera outbreak is the worst epidemic to hit the country in 14 years.

“Years of economic hardship have affected many Zimbabweans’ access to health care, food and water,” said Thomas Merkelbach, head of the ICRC regional delegation in Harare. “Recent months have seen a certain increase in regional and international support, but long-term investment will be needed to rebuild the country’s public services. The needs are huge, many people live in great poverty, and food production is unlikely to rise in the near future.”

World Vision officials reported that they have seen the spread of cholera in Zimbabwe slow considerably in the past few months. However, the need for food and aid in the country is still overwhelming.

“While cholera did spread across the border into South Africa, and in Zimbabwe the number of cases reached 100,000, we are pleased to report that the outbreak has now tapered significantly,” said Debebe Dawit, World Vision’s emergency management officer for Africa. “The situation is certainly getting better. Cholera spreads in areas where there is poor water quality and poor sanitation. By addressing those issues the cholera outbreak has slowed and the people are not at as high a risk.”

“Our immediate concern now is water and sanitation and food security. As I mentioned, water and sanitation are essential to stemming the cholera outbreak and preventing future outbreaks. And food security is a concern because of the poor crop harvests in some sections of the country this year.”

According to U.N. estimates, about 5.1 million people are affected by the current food insecurity. Schools were closed at the end of last year and failed to reopen at the beginning of this year following a salary dispute between teachers and the government. Hospitals were also closed following a massive exodus of staff in protest against poor remunerations and working conditions.

World Vision, which began operation in Zimbabwe in 1973, reiterated that they are always focused on the humanitarian needs of the people they serve. Their concerns are similar to that of ICRC.

“There is great need in Zimbabwe for short-term relief as well as long-term development,” said Dawit. “We work with communities to help them become self-sustaining and educate them in areas such as health and farming so that they can lift themselves out of poverty.”

The group and other relief aid organizations have provided drugs, oral rehydration fluids and seconded staff with a medical background to assist at the quarantine camp to preserve the lives of those seeking treatment.

The team has also drilled and flushed boreholes in Beitbridge and Bulawayo and installed water reservoirs as part of long term measures to restore the supply of clean and safe water.

They have also partnered with European Union (ECHO) to help provide Water and Sanitation Hygiene (WASH) facilities to health institutions in rural Zimbabwe in response to the cholera epidemic. The $852,000 (U.S.) program will run until the end of August. It covers six districts of Guruve, Centenary, Rushinga, Mudzi, Buhera and Gwanda, providing boreholes and latrines.

“We are hopeful that the outbreak will not continue to spread and that the new water and sanitation systems will help prevent outbreaks in the future,” Dawit said. “One of the strongest indicators of the effectiveness of our work has been that the cholera outbreak has been subdued. Additionally, we have been able to help people in the quarantine camps and also provide prevention training to communities. We hope that this work will help mitigate future outbreaks.”

Merkelbach said since April 2009, one of the major areas of focus for the ICRC has been to provide food for 6,300 detainees in prison. “Working with the prison authorities, the ICRC has set up therapeutic feeding programs and has begun improving cooking facilities and water systems in prisons. Once the food situation has stabilized, the ICRC will continue to assess conditions of detention, refurbish kitchen and sanitation facilities and upgrade water supply systems. In addition, we will work to prevent the transmission of infectious diseases and will ensure that detainees receive the treatment they require in the event of any outbreak of disease such as cholera.”

Medical care is another urgent need. Each month, Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) medical teams perform between 4,000-5,000 consultations for Zimbabweans in the South African border town of Musina and at a clinic at the Central Methodist Church in inner-city Johannesburg.

“We see thousands of sick, wounded, psychologically scarred and marginalized Zimbabweans in both Johannesburg and Musina every month,” said Dr Eric Goemaere, medical coordinator for MSF in South Africa. “They come to us because they have nowhere else to turn. Many of those who reach us have chronic diseases, such as HIV and TB, and severe violence-related injuries, most often from rape and sexual assault experienced while crossing the border from Zimbabwe, but also in South Africa itself. Consultations in our Johannesburg clinic have almost tripled in the last year, a telling sign of the extent to which Zimbabweans are consistently denied access to even the most basic health services necessary for their survival.”

To find out how to help relief efforts in Zimbabwe, view this video from Campus Crusade.