Cholera, diarrhoea outbreak in Zim

The residents association’s Chief Executive Officer, Farai Barnabas Mangodza, said his organization had received an increasing number of reports of the outbreak in the capital-Harare. 

 He said the hard hit areas comprise residential suburbs of Tafara and Mabvuku high density although no deaths have yet been reported. “Residents complain that while in some parts of Mabvuku and Tafara there has been a steady supply of water, it is almost always dirty and has a suspicious smell”, said Mangodza. 

 “On Monday a CHRA team visited Mabvuku and Tafara and interviewed medical personnel in private and public clinics. It has emerged that hundreds of people are suffering from stomach problems which medical personnel liken to cholera and dysentery”. Officials from the ministry of health said the department would soon investigate CHRA’s reports of the outbreak and respond quickly.Mangodza said his organization’s recent survey revealed that most inhabitants cannot afford medical expenses and “resort to traditional means” adding a lot of residents have been hit by the stomach ailments claiming the outbreak was a result of authorities’ failure to supply adequate and clean water. “The problems of disease outbreaks come after residents in Mabvuku and Tafara have been hit by serious water shortages resulting in most households fetching water from streams,” said the CHRA official. 

 “As for the few who have water from their taps, the water is dirty and has visible algae”. The Zimbabwe National Water Authority (ZINWA) took over the administration of sewer and water reticulation from the City of Harare last year. However CHRA says the take over has resulted in erratic water supply and persistent sewer blockages in several high density suburbs. “Sadly, ZINWA has failed to provide adequate water supplies for business and household use in Harare. The City of Harare has over 60% of water in its water bodies but ZINWA has no capacity to treat adequate supplies for residential and industrial consumption”, said Mangodza. – CAJ News.