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7 November 2002 by Solveig Olafsdottir in Harare Zaka district in Masvingo province in central Zimbabwe looks dry and barren. It has suffered three consecutive years of below average harvest. According to a recent vulnerability assessment study, more than 64 percent of Zaka's population of 250,000 are in need of food aid between now and March next year. Many have barely survived since this summer, having to rely on scouring for wild berries and fruit to substitute for meals. To compund the crisis, Zaka has one of the highest prevalences of HIV/AIDS infections in Zimbabwe, with some 42 percent of the adult population living with the disease. It was therefore yet another blow to the community when cholera broke out in early September, sweeping through Zaka and the neighbouring district of Bikita. Some 500 cases and 24 deaths were reported before the health authorities and the Zimbabwe Red Cross managed to get the situation under control. "The cholera outbreak added to the already heavy burden of the people, with the food security situation and HIV/AIDS infection rate. We could be getting reports of people dying any time," says Anthony Masarakufa, the Red Cross district director. The Red Cross has specifically targeted Zaka district for water and sanitation projects in its US$ 60 million Southern Africa drought appeal. The need is immense. According to an assessment carried out by the Zimbabwe Red Cross Water and Sanitation team, the 96 villages affected by cholera in the district share only 12 water points, of which only two are working properly. This means that many people, already weakened by hunger, have to walk up to 15 km to fetch clean water. Most resort to using untreated water from irrigation canals, or any other surface water they can get - which is the same water they use to bathe in and wash their clothes. Matha Jika is one of them. She lost her husband to cholera on 3 September. "My husband fell ill one evening, and was sick the whole night. The next day he was dead," she says. "He was vomiting and kept complaining about stomach pains." Matha is 23 years old and has three children, all under the age of five. Her husband, who was 33, also had a very young second wife, and another child by her. Now the two women have to take care of each other, their children and their mother in law - and try to survive. "Red Cross people came and taught us how to put powder in the water before drinking it. They taught us how cholera spreads and how to prevent us from getting sick," Martha says. William Kativu, the water and sanitation team leader of the Zimbabwe Red Cross, is convinced that the swift action and close cooperation between the Red Cross and health authorities were crucial in getting the situation under control and curbing further spread of the cholera. Trained Zimbabwe Red Cross volunteers visited some 4,500 households during the outbreak and, as they distributed water containers and chlorine powder for purifying drinking water, they taught the villagers how to avoid getting sick. The Red Cross also provided health clinics in Zaka with tents to isolate cholera patients from others, as well as cholera kits and Oral Re-hydration Salt sachets. "There is a clear link between the cholera outbreak at this time of year, and the food shortages. Usually cholera comes up after the rainy season, when there is stagnant water around, but this time it is due to lack of water. People are simply too weak to walk to the next water point," says Ben Mountfield, International Federation food security operation representative in Zimbabwe. "The sanitation is also very poor, and because people are malnourished the spread of diseases is imminent. The Red Cross is very concerned that the situation will only get worse come the rainy season," he adds. More than 14 million people are threatened with starvation across southern Africa due to severe drought. Zimbabwe has been hardest hit by cholera, but cases have also been reported in neighbouring countries. Matha considers herself to be lucky, though, for the time being. She still has some maize left - grown on a rented field close to the irrigation canal. But she knows that this will not last long in a family with three adults and four children. And she knows she cannot afford to plant in the irrigated field this year. The family has lost their breadwinner. Related links: Southern Africa food crisis Southern Africa: appeals, updates and reports Make a donation |
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