shloboe boe
Rumbidzayi Zinyuke, Harare Bureau
THERE has been a steady decline in the number of new cholera cases being reported in the country owing to interventions implemented by the Government and its partners.
The resurgence of cholera in the country started on November 4, 2024 in Kariba District, Mashonaland West Province.
Since then, sporadic suspected and confirmed cases have been reported in other districts, mostly in Mashonaland West and Mashonaland Central.
To date cases have been reported in Kariba, Chiredzi, Mazowe, northern Harare, Bindura, Shamva and Chipinge districts in four of the10 provinces of the country.
Over the past few weeks, Glendale and Citrus Flower areas in Mazowe district reported a surge in cases exacerbated by the contamination of open water sources which most people use in these areas.
Health and Child Care Secretary Dr Aspect Maunganidze confirmed that there had been a noted decline in cholera cases.
“Indeed, our interventions have been effective. Some of the interventions that we instituted in Glendale included case management, an intensified clean-up campaign as well as sewer management,” he said.
“The district set up Cholera Treatment Centres (CTC) at Tsungubvi Polyclinic to treat all cases that need hospitalisation. This has resulted in a case fatality rate of less than 1 percent. The district also embarked on an intensified clean-up campaign in the affected areas. In addition, vending has also been stopped.”
According to authorities, one of the biggest drivers of cholera in the area was poor water and sanitation infrastructure.
With no running water, many families have been forced to drill boreholes or dig shallow wells in their homes. But the limited flow of sewerage resulted in numerous pipe bursts whenever there was water, leading to seepage of the sewerage into unprotected water sources.
Dr Maunganidze said the local authority had begun clearing the blockages and was working on a permanent solution to the recurrent blockages and waste pipe bursts.
“Water quality checks are also being conducted by environmental health technicians in the communities to ensure safe consumable water. Aqua tabs have been distributed to disinfect water and make it safe, while it is encouraged to boil any water regardless of how clean it looks. The Ministry, through the National Aids Council, has drilled 2 boreholes and are installing tanks to allow for safe water dispensing,” he added.
Dr Maunganidze said risk communication and community engagement were being conducted for the affected communities through the use of Village Health Workers, environmental health teams and nurses while two rehydration points had been set up in these communities.
A reactive targeted oral cholera vaccination campaign is also being implemented in the affected localities targeting a population of 5000 people.
As of January 14, 2025, a cumulative total of 285 suspected cholera cases were reported. In addition, one suspected and one confirmed cholera death were recorded. Of all the cases, 28 were laboratory confirmed.
Mashonaland West has reported the highest number of cases at 128 and one death while Mashonaland Central has reported 127 cases and one death. The other cases were reported in Masvingo (27), Harare (2) and Manicaland (1).
The current outbreak came after the country had declared an end to a deadly outbreak in July last year, which affected more than 30 000 people killing about 719.
The outbreak had begun in February 2023, affecting 15 countries in Africa.
The success in combating that cholera outbreak was attributed to a multi-faceted approach that included rapid response teams, mass vaccination campaigns, improved water and sanitation infrastructure and heightened public awareness.
Last year, more than 400 boreholes were drilled in clinics countrywide while others were drilled in communities under the Presidential Borehole Drilling Scheme and other initiatives. This ensured that communities had clean and safe drinking water.
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