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Rumbidzayi Zinyuke Manicaland Bureau
The onset of the rainy season has galvanised Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) stakeholders to put in place rapid response mechanisms to curb potential disease outbreaks in cyclone-affected areas.
Chimanimani and Chipinge, which were mostly affected by the tropical cyclone that killed hundreds of people and left thousands homeless, is prone to disease outbreaks since most water supply and sanitation facilities were destroyed.
There was a cholera outbreak in the affected areas soon after the disaster, a development communities fear might recur.
Speaking at a WASH National Action Committee training programme, Mercy Corps Zimbabwe senior WASH programme manager Mr Collen Shoko said all system were in place to ensure communities in cyclone-affected areas were protected.
Mercy Corps is the WASH emergencies focal agent in Manicaland and has been coordinating other stakeholders in partnership with the Government to restore services in Chimanimani.
“We are working on a plan with other stakeholders in the province to ensure that we preposition our response materials in case another disaster strikes, we should be able to respond better than what we did when we were first hit by Cyclone Idai,” he said.
“So far, we have coordinated other NGOs to restore water supplies and the provision of latrines in the affected areas. We have a programme in Chimanimani and Chipinge where we are helping households to construct 650 latrines.
“We are also going to protect 65 springs and working with community health clubs to ensure that we promote health and hygiene in those areas.
“This is a programme funded by USAID which started in August and will be complete by February 2020.”
The NAC workshop, was held to equip the provincial rapid response teams with skills and information on how to respond in WASH emergency situations.
“The coming in of the provincial rapid response team training will gel in well with the efforts we are doing. It strengthens our capacity to respond and to help each other especially when it comes to disaster,” said Mr Shoko.
NAC team leader for Manicaland Ms Kundai Kangwena said stakeholders were on high alert.
“We are at high risk in terms of cholera typhoid and other diseases, so we want to establish strong teams at national, provincial and district level so that there is quick and rapid response whenever an emergency happens.
“It is our desire to make sure that we do not have any more disasters emanating from the situation in Chimanimani and, as a sector, everyone is in an urgent mode to make sure that the issues arising in Chimanimani are addressed as soon as possible,” she said.
She said the rapid response teams would be mandated to address WASH challenges such as dilapidated infrastructure, unplanned urban expansion and rampant open defecation in all districts
“We want to talk about safe sanitation facilities so that we curb the issues of open defecation both in rural and urban areas. We also want to promote safe hygiene practices, proper waste management and hand washing initiatives,” said Ms Kangwena.
According to the Zimbabwe Vulnerability Assessment Committee (ZimVac) 2019 Rural livelihoods Assessment report, 19 percent of households in Manicaland use open defecation as they have no sanitation facilities.
Although this is considerably lower than the national average of 33 percent, it still presents a challenge of increased risk of spreading infectious diarrhoeal diseases.
Online Reporter