Editorial Comment: Lessons from Buhera, Mhondoro and cities

The only significant message coming from rural and high-density areas is that a lot more needs to be done to disseminate coronavirus-related communication.

The fear is that with winter approaching and temperatures favouring the virus, the country could be heading into turbulence.

For those in rural areas, there is an apparent misconception that coronavirus is an urban problem, while within the cities, there is a divide between the high and low-density areas.

Residents in most high-density suburbs appear to believe that coronavirus is an issue for residents of low-density suburbs.

The approach and response to the virus by villagers and high-density residents appears to be a “business-as-usual” one.

There is a sense that villagers and high-density dwellers appear to think that the Government is being unnecessarily harsh.

They think only low-density suburbs need to observe social distancing, wear masks, use sanitisers and frequently wash their hands.

In urban areas, this misconception is evident in the congestion at markets and shopping centres in the high-density suburbs.

In rural areas, villagers continue to congregate and express their puzzlement when quizzed about the threat of coronavirus.

Last week, media, including this newspaper, reported how villagers in Mhondoro, Mashonaland West Province, where an octogenarian woman became the fourth Zimbabwean to succumb to the Covid-19, expressed outright disbelief about the prospect of the virus having reached rural areas.

Most hold onto the belief that the 82-year-old died of old age.

In Manicaland, villagers in Buhera central district are adamant that Covid-19 is not a poor person’s condition. They firmly believe that the virus afflicts the rich and urban dwellers.

This points to the dearth of education and information or that enforcement of the stay-at-home directive and social distancing are challenges.

Acting on this knowledge, there is need to scramble resources and despatch teams or better still ramp up resources available at district and village health centres so that appropriate information is given to these communities.

Heading into winter, such a move would be a timely investment that will help keep fatalities low.

If ever the numbers of people succumbing to Covid-19 spike, the Government will come under criticism, for not having done enough to prepare communities against  coronavirus.

There is a phalanx of armchair critics, waiting to point fingers and shout themselves hoarse, charging the Government for not doing enough.

There have been enough examples, in Britain, Italy, Spain and now Latin America.

There is need to demonstrate that the Government is alive to these precedents and act speedily to forestall any calamities from visiting our shores on the scales witnessed in the countries mentioned above.

While the appropriate measures are being considered for implementation, a possibility would be to rope in local structures at district and village levels to help in spreading the information about the threat of the virus.

Chiefs, Members of Parliament, village heads and community-based health workers carry lot of authority in rural areas.

It would therefore, be imperative to work with them in order to minimise the threat and danger posed by Covid-19 and thus ensure Zimbabwe contains the likely human loss.

Women have, historically been in the majority of primary health care givers.

They also constitute the majority of the country’s population. It would, therefore, make more sense to expect their greater inclusion in the fight against Covid-19.

Never has the expression, “when you educate a woman, you educate a nation,” been more appropriate in arguing their inclusion in the campaign against coronavirus.

Health care workers are able to provide accurate and reliable information at community levels. They are the country’s first line of defence in containing the virus or any health related threats.

In urban areas, the Government will need to work with councillors so that the messages are disseminated from ward level into the communities.

While mobile network operators have played a commendable role in alerting users, Government needs to scale up mobile units or get them working many areas in the urban areas than they are presently covering.

It will be recalled that Government received donations of fuel from the private sector as part of the sector’s contributions to the fight against Covid-19.

The fuel donation, could among other things, come in handy in ramping up the campaign against the coronavirus.

While all current indicators appear to favour us, this is the opportunity to mount effective mass awareness campaigns.