Cholera outbreak 'an emergency'

2008-12-04 08:08

Harare - Zimbabwe has declared a cholera outbreak which has claimed 565 lives a national emergency and appealed for international aid to tackle the epidemic, the state-run Herald daily said on Thursday.

"The government yesterday declared the cholera outbreak ... and the malfunctioning of central hospitals as national emergencies and appealed to the donor community for assistance to alleviate the situation," it said.

"The emergency appeal will help us reduce the morbidity and mortality associated with the current socio-economic environment," Health Minister David Parirenyatwa told a meeting of aid groups, the newspaper reported.

"Our central hospitals are literally not functioning. Our staff is demotivated and we need your support to ensure that they start coming to work and our health system is revived," he added.

Water was mostly restored in Harare on Wednesday after a crippling 48-hour water cut, water resources deputy minister Walter Mzembi told AFP.

Taps in Harare ran dry on Saturday after the state-run water company ran short of aluminium sulphate, a chemical used to purify water, forcing people to dig shallow wells and sparking trade in water selling.

Charities have warned that the cholera outbreak had already spread to neighbouring South Africa.

Health authorities in northern South Africa said the Limpopo River, a major waterway and border with Zimbabwe, had tested positive for cholera this week.

Cholera is the latest challenge to hit the poverty-wracked southern African nation that is already struggling with political instability and rampant hyperinflation - the world's highest .

The UN Children's Fund (Unicef) announced emergency measures Tuesday to increase health services, provide nutritional supplements and widen access to safe water in Zimbabwe.

Its effort will include buying essential medicines for 70% of the Zimbabwe's population of 11 million, immunisation for 1.5 million children and emergency support and protection for 250 000 orphans and vulnerable children.

Cholera is caused by food or water tainted with vibrio cholera bacteria, the World Health Organization says. With a short incubation period, it brings on diarrhoea that can fast lead to severe dehydration and death.

- SAPA