Zimbabwe Cholera outbreak kills more than 565 people. (Image courtesy of Reuters)

Like a lot of poor countries in Africa, Zimbabwe is a crazy place to live (see map of Zimbabwe).  It’s ruled by an authoritarian President (Robert Mugabe).  You might of heard of him - his armies kill a whole lot of people, he tortures people who oppose him politically, has let the country’s inflation rate hit 11 million percent (I’m not kidding about those things - CNN article, NY Times articles) and for the most part is running his country into ruin.  Doesn’t that just make you want to pack up your stuff and move there?  Imagine the people that have to live there.

If that doesn’t sound bad enough, now Zimbabwe has a Cholera Outbreak and because of it has declared a National Emergency.  Here is a quick breakdown of what is going on:

• More than 565 people have died so far, according to the United Nations
• Zimbabwe does not have a health care system that could handle an epidemic
  • Quote from Zimbabwe’s Health Minister, David Parirenyatwa: “Our central hospitals are literally not functioning. Our staff is de-motivated and we need your support to ensure that they start coming to work and our health system is revived”.
• People are struggling to find clean drinking water (NY Times)
• The political situation there is predicted to make the outbreak much worse

What is Cholera?  Here are some quick facts about Cholera (info from Wikipedia’s entry on Cholera):

• It’s a bacteria
• Humans get Cholera through drinking water or eating food that has the bacteria in it
• Once in your system, Cholera attacks your intestines
• It causes severe diarrhea which can lead to death if not treated right away
• Treatment: Re-hydration (i.e. drinking lots of clean non-infected water)
  • Something to think about: How is re-hydration going to happen in a country where 19% of the population doesn’t have access to improved drinking water and 47% don’t have access to improved sanitation facilities?
  • See more statistics about Zimbabwe

Here is a video about the Cholera National Emergency in Zimbabwe (from Reuters):

What can you do to help the situation in Zimbabwe?

• World Concern provides limited health and medical services (deworming medication) in Zimbabwe.
  • Donate to Health and medical services
• World Concern does not have a child sponsorship program in Zimbabwe, but you can sponsor a child in Kenya, Africa - a country that’s fairly close geographically to Zimbabwe.