Cholera Medicines Sent to Zimbabwe
In response to the outbreak of cholera in Zimbabwe, Dorcas, in partnership with Medical Teams International, assists some 1,800 victims in Harare, Zimbabwe.
Three cholera-kits were airlifted December 23 from the Netherlands to a hospital of a local partner organisation to treat victims of the disease.
One cholera kit serves 100 severe cholera cases or 400 moderate cholera cases in addition to treatment for 100 adults plus 100 children affected by Shigella dysentery.
Zimbabwe's cholera epidemic is picking up speed, with a total of 1,732 deaths out of 34,306 cases, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said on Tuesday. A cholera update dated January 5 showed a further 59 deaths and 731 new cases, up from 32 deaths and 379 fresh cases reported the previous day, it said.
Cholera is spreading in Zimbabwe because of the deterioration of the country's healthcare and water supply systems. Health services have become increasingly stretched as doctors and nurses embark on strike action for higher wages because of the country's hyperinflation.
In November, Médecins Sans Frontières warned that 1.4 million people are at risk from cholera in Harare alone. On December 4, the Zimbabwean government declared the cholera outbreak a national emergency and called for international assistance. Hundreds of asylum seekers from Zimbabwe have been streaming into South Africa daily but the number of illegal immigrants is unknown.
This is terrible! What can I do?
- pray for the people of Zimbabwe!
- pray for the work Dorcas and its partners are doing in helping the victims
- give a gift of love
- tell your family and friends about Dorcas and its work
Please visit our webpage soon again for updates on the project!
Photo: Children carry water collected from a stream in Budiriro neighbourhood in Harare, December 17, 2008. Zimbabwe's neighbours will launch an urgent humanitarian campaign in the hope of saving the country from economic collapse and a cholera epidemic, South African President Kgalema Motlanthe said on Wednesday. REUTERS/Philimon Bulawayo (ZIMBABWE) REUTERS/PHILIMON BULAWAYO
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