Cholera has killed 389 people in Zimbabwe to date and the disease is also spreading into neighbouring Botswana and South Africa, the United Nations warned on Friday.
A total of 9 463 cases have been recorded in the impoverished Southern African country, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said.
OCHA warned of an ”alarming regional dimension” and said that the health ministries of South Africa and Zimbabwe were working on coordination efforts together with the World Health Organisation.
”The rapid deterioration of the health service delivery system in Zimbabwe, the lack of adequate water supply, and lack of capacity to dispose of solid waste and repair sewage blockages in most areas will continue to contribute to the escalation and spread of the outbreak,” said OCHA spokesperson Elisabeth Byrs.
Zimbabwe belatedly changed its tune on Thursday and asked for international help to fight the outbreak after long insisting that the situation was under control.
”With the coming of the rainy season, the situation could get worse,” said Deputy Health Minister Edwin Muguti.
”Our problems are quite simple. We need to be assisted.”
The explosion of cholera is the latest sign of the collapse of the country that was regarded as a post-colonial success story in the first two decades after independence from Britain in 1980 but is now burdened by the world’s highest rate of inflation — last put at 231 million percent.
The nation’s dilapidated infrastructure has left sewage flowing openly in the streets while drinking water goes untreated.
Agreement
Meanwhile, Zimbabwe’s political rivals have agreed on a draft constitutional amendment to allow them to form a power-sharing government, but obstacles still remain to setting it up, the opposition said on Friday.
On-off talks between President Robert Mugabe’s Zanu-PF and Morgan Tsvangirai’s Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) have made little progress since they reached a deal in September seen as the best hope of pulling Zimbabwe back from economic collapse.
”We have reached an understanding, an agreement on the draft constitutional Bill, pending consultations and endorsement by our different leadership organs,” MDC spokesperson Nelson Chamisa told Reuters.
Negotiators from Zanu-PF, the MDC and a breakaway MDC faction have been meeting with mediator Thabo Mbeki in South Africa to discuss the amendment, under growing regional pressure to finalise their deal.
Chamisa said the talks had ended.
”The draft constitutional amendment Bill is just one of a number of issues that have been on the table. These issues, including the sharing of some Cabinet posts, the appointment of provincial governors and other senior government positions, have not been resolved,” he said.
”On our part, the MDC leadership will meet next week to discuss this, and give a direction as to how we are going to proceed.”
Zanu-PF officials were not immediately available for comment.
Many in the Southern African country hope a deal will bring in a new government to end a economic crisis where unemployment stands at 90%
The real level is thought to be even higher. Some estimate that prices of basic goods are doubling every 24 hours. — AFP, Reuters