An outbreak of deadly typhoid fever, often caused by contaminated water, has reportedly struck the suburb of Mabvuku, outside of Zimbabwe’s capital, Harare. I was distressed to hear this, though not surprised. Zimbabwe’s water and sanitation infrastructure has been plagued by inattention, corruption, and mismanagement for years. Another outbreak of waterborne disease was all but certain.
I am particularly familiar with Mabvuku, which was one of eight high-density areas outside Harare that I visited last year while researching Zimbabwe’s water and sanitation crisis. Human Rights Watch’s findings, published in the report “Troubled Water,” showed that residents across these areas have resorted to drinking from shallow wells that are often contaminated with sewage. Even in urban areas, people are forced to defecate outdoors. The government’s failure to provide access to potable water and adequate sanitation has taken a serious toll on the health of its people.
It is well known that waterborne diseases thrive in communities without clean water and sanitation services. In 2008 and 2009, when Zimbabwe’s economy – along with its healthcare, sanitation, and water infrastructure – collapsed, cholera devastated the country and killed more than 4,000 people. Today, diarrhea is responsible for ten percent of deaths for children under ten in Zimbabwe. That failure to address these basic needs will result in more death and more suffering is not in question.
So where is Zimbabwe’s government? Shortly after we released our report, the national government acknowledged the threat of waterborne disease and held a press conference pledging to step up its response. Yet according to the Combined Harare Residents Association, a local nongovernmental organization (NGO) in Harare, none of the promises have been fulfilled.
Harare’s local government has done no better. In 2013 officials told us that the city government was broke and could not afford to buy even basic water treatment chemicals on a regular basis. But last month it was revealed that the salaries and perks of Harare’s top 18 officials alone cost $500,000 a month.
Wateraid, an international NGO, released a report this week documenting the failure of southern African governments to give priority to water and sanitation, and the resulting suffering of their citizens. Zimbabwe is no different. Until the local and national governments take action to fulfill people’s right to water and sanitation, the people of Mabvuku, and all of Zimbabwe, will continue to struggle for survival against waterborne disease.
