Category: zimbabwe

Leroy Dzenga and Elliot Ziwira
Italy as of yesterday stood as the most affected country since Covid-19 broke out.

It has 59 138 cases and 5 476 deaths.

What has resulted in Italy being so hard hit when other countries seem to be struggling, but with less intensity?

Lethargy: Indications are that authorities in the European country failed to convince citizens that the novel virus bears a serious threat to life.

Everyone kept going about their business, instead of distancing themselves socially.

The same seems to be the case in Zimbabwe, where alarm bells from authorities appear to be falling on deaf ears.

During the early days of the outbreak in Italy, a politician was pictured drinking an aperitivo in Milan, urging people “not to change our habits”.

This made difficult efforts to effect precautionary measures like social distancing, self-isolation as people continued going about their business, partying in some instances.

The same parallel can be drawn from Zimbabwe where people are still cramping in commuter omnibuses and places like Mupedzanhamo in Mbare are still teeming with human traffic.

Some are being told to disregard the panic that has gripped the country by faith leaders, there is need to take lessons from what happened in Italy.

The politician, Mr Nicola Zingaretti who told Italians to continue living life as usual 10 days later announced to the country that he is positive with Covid-19.

In three weeks, the man had been made to eat his words, literally by this virus.

One sometimes has a feeling that, God forbid, Zimbabwe may be headed towards the same disastrous path as people are still continuing with their workshops in conference rooms, munching on triangle shaped sandwiches and sipping tea from miniature cups at a time when they should be at home; social distancing.

Gradual lockdown: There is still debate among public health professionals and economists on what is the best approach in containing the outbreak.

Health professionals prefer a big bang break in business to contain the spread, while economists prefer a measured response.

Italy, compared to China had a slowed down reaction to Covid-19, people still had parties when they were supposed to be socially distancing.
Now health facilities are overwhelmed, extra doctors had to come from Cuba to assist with the crisis.

One gets the feeling Zimbabwe, if habits and practices do not change, may be headed towards the same route.

Days after President Mnangagwa advised Zimbabweans to take extra caution and ordered that there should not be crowds exceeding 100, people are dicing with death.

Over the last weekend, clubs and pubs in the country had events where they only allowed 100 people in as if those numbers are not grave enough to cause damage.

Professor Hugh Montgomery says Covid-19 is highly infectious.

“This virus is very infectious; every person passes it on to about three people.”

With that number, it means the more there is movement even in constrained numbers, there is a greater risk of infections breaking out from gatherings.

Companies, that are part of the reason why there is high movement and little adherence to social distancing, self-isolation and self-quarantine should start considering reducing their staff.

Capitalist stubbornness is what created the problem in Italy, at a time when countries were closing borders, they were seeking to boost their economy thinking they could capitalise on the gaps other economies would have left.

On January 21, Italy’s culture and tourism minister hosted a Chinese delegation for a concert at the National Academy of Santa Cecilia to inaugurate the year of Italy-China Culture and Tourism.

This was when everyone was limiting events, but they chose to go ahead anyway and the consequences are now telling.
Zimbabwean companies present the same threat as they are not showing signs of scaling down, despite the visible threat.

The informal sector is equally complicit, no one wants to compromise for the greater good.

Othering: Italy had public officials and private citizens believing that Covid-19 was a problem they will only follow from their television screens.

Like the rest of the world, they thought it was a Chinese problem until it landed on their doorstep, albeit violently.
Zimbabwe is suffering the same complacency.

For all its high levels of formal education, there is an alarming number of people in Zimbabwe who are convinced that black people are immune to Covid-19.

Sandra Zampa, the Italian health ministry under-secretary in January said in the early days of Covid-19 in China, it looked like something in a science fiction movie.

This was in January, fast forward to March, China is containing the scourge and Italy is reeling with medical facilities getting overwhelmed.

Zimbabwe for the greater part of the outbreak’s duration has been adopting an attitude similar to the Italians.

Recently, a number of people were up in arms with a lady who had decided to wear a mask in a kombi accusing her of insinuating that they are infected.

Such stubborn ignorance may have dire consequences on the country.

Individual spreading: Those who would have been found to be positive or under observation sometimes put people at risk by not adhering to instructions they would have been given.

When people are in doubt, they should self-isolate, but that is rarely the case with some individuals who continue with their normal routines.

Italy had a man who went gallivanting even when he had severe symptoms.

The 38-year-old man from Codogno had severe flu, but continued with his routines, creating danger for everyone he got in touch with.

He even declined to be hospitalised.

Such behaviour, although circumstances are different, can be seen in Zimbabwe where people are nursing colds, instead of getting checked for Covid-19.

Some will engage authorities when they have done a great deal of spreading, putting others at risk.

Fake news and misinformation

In fighting any crisis, misinformation is one of the biggest challenges any country can face, Italy was not spared in this regard.

A lot of dubious knowledge circulated which was detrimental to efforts by health authorities.
Some tried local remedies.

In Zimbabwe the case is the same, there are those who are prescribing concoctions to each other which include cloves of garlic, ginger and steaming, but the World Health Organisation (WHO) says there is no known cure.

Some are taking pills like ibuprofen, despite advise against their consumption due to the fact that they thin one’s blood.

All this information has not had an adverse effect on a patient, but has done damage to public perception as some believe they can jog off the virus, instead of seeking medical help.

If Zimbabwe is to win the uphill battle that awaits it, the flow of accurate information has to be given due attention.

Knowledge Transfer Africa chief executive officer Charles Dhewa, who interacts with farmers on a daily basis at Mbare Musika, said there is need for visibility on the part of official communication to curb panic on the generality of the population, especially farmers.

Farmers are a population of interest as they operate in crowded markets.

“Our farmers tend to rely on social media and rumour as sources of news.

“Although the Ministry of Health and Child Care gives updates on Covid-19 as the official mouthpiece, there is need for other Government  ministries, like Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services and Lands, Agriculture and Rural Resettlement to deploy officials to informal hubs like Mbare Musika, Mbare Produce Market, Mupedzanhamo, Siyaso, Sakubva and Glen View 8 Complex to see what is happening on the ground and enlighten people on preventive measures and Covid-19 impacts,” Dhewa said.

There is also need to fumigate the areas and provide sanitisers, he added.

On the issue of maintaining social distance and staying indoors to arrest the spread of the Covid-19, Dhewa averred that such measures are imported and cannot possibly have the same effect since the Zimbabwean economy is different from Western ones.

There is need to learn from mistakes made by other countries and in this case, Italy can be a case study.

Beaven Dhliwayo Features Correspondent

Traditional ways of doing business do not consider crowds as unacceptable, but with the coming in of coronavirus (Covid-19), the thinking has been changed.

Coronaviruses, which cause Covid-19, are a large family of viruses that cause illness ranging from the common cold to more severe diseases such as Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS-CoV) and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS-CoV).

Covid-19 is a new strain that was discovered in 2019, and has not been previously identified in humans.

Coronaviruses are zoonotic, meaning they are transmitted between animals and people.

Detailed investigations found that SARS-CoV was transmitted from civet cats to humans and MERS-CoV from dromedary camels to humans.
Several known coronaviruses are circulating in animals and have not yet infected humans.

The coronavirus outbreak is a human tragedy, affecting hundreds of thousands of people across the globe, and it is also having a growing impact on the global economy.

For long, crowds confined in a space have been considered a sign of good business, but now are a health scare and risk.

Across the country, for businesses to survive in the era of Covid-19, a paradigm shift is a must.

Institute of Directors Zimbabwe (IoDZ) chairman Mike Juru told The Herald that central workplaces are no longer ideal, as such people are now expected to work from home.

“Smartphones and laptops are now tools of trade, while access to data is now a basic requirement,” he said.

“Proper work spaces have to be created at home. This also calls for safety and health issues to be given attention at work premises.”

The question that arises, according to Juru is: could this be the end of commercial office buildings?

Yes and no, he said, are both correct answers.

“Yes, because demand will go down and no as there will still be the need for offices for holding other meetings,” said Juru.

“The space for commercial property investment space will change, same as residential development which will continue to thrive, but with a change in design to incorporate working space at home.”

This means that availability of reliable Internet connection countrywide is of great importance.

All retail spaces are now under scrutiny, and people cannot risk being congested, hence there is need for retailers and the general public to adopt online shopping.

Online shopping is the activity or action of buying products or services over the Internet.

It means going online, landing on a seller’s website, selecting something, and arranging for its delivery.

The buyer either pays for the goods or service online with a credit or debit card or upon delivery.

Thus, e-commerce, warehousing, distribution and logistics or last mile delivery services demand will rise, said the IoDZ chairman.

Even schools and universities should now have a component of online training so that they will not be caught unawares if the pandemic hits the country.

This all requires gadgets that include laptops and smartphones which need unlimited Internet connections.

Imagine an economy where people won’t need to visit Government offices for services.

“E-government should now be a necessity to ensure that the nation does not grind to a halt in the case of Covid-19,” said Juru.

“On the other hand, a surge in demand for data will also require service providers to lower their prices. Gadgets should be affordable so that people won’t be inconvenienced if the need to work from home arises.”

If the country is affected by the Covid-19, demand for public transport will be lowered as people will avoid travelling.

This means jobs for drivers and even touts are at risk.

Covid-19 is real and a danger to human existence considering the rate at which it is spreading across the world.

The rate is exponential and frightening, meaning the country should be prepared to fight it and protect citizens.

IoDZ has also been assessing the negative impact that the pandemic may have on corporates.

Indeed, Covid-19 presents business continuity risks that may pose novel challenges to directors and heads of corporates.

Nonetheless, the good news is several precautionary measures have been recommended by health experts, as well as relevant national and international institutions.

If judiciously followed, individuals and corporates will go a long way in curbing this unprecedented health scare and ensure business continuity.

The IoDZ recommends every director, organisation, business entity or company to follow a guide given by the World Health Organisation (WHO) titled: Getting your workplace ready for COVID-19 found at https://www.who.int/docs/default-source/coronaviruse/getting-workplace-ready-for-covid-19.pdf.

The guide contains low-cost measures that will help prevent the spread of infections in the workplace, such as colds, flu and stomach bugs, and protect customers, contractors and employees.

The guide provides information on what employers should start doing even if COVID-19 has not arrived in their communities.

It also looks on things to consider when employees travel and getting businesses ready in case COVID-19 is diagnosed in their communities.

Management is encouraged to lead the initiative, and be astute leaders during these trying times, and ensure the highest standards of safety and hygiene for their employees and members of the community. This is what good corporate citizenship means.

Personnel should constantly be sensitised and reminded of the implications of COVID-19.

IoDZ advises that all necessary and adequate precautions are taken at offices as part of ways to prevent any case of this virus.

Also recommended is to continuously monitor the developments in the country, in particular and the world in general, and always stand guided by expert advice.

On March 17, the Government declared Covid-19 a state of national disaster, and announced several measures to prevent any cases of infection.

The Covid-19 pandemic is a sad story with an unclear ending at the moment.

Certain at the moment is that it is threatening human lives, and many people across the globe have succumbed to the pandemic.

Therefore, local companies have an imperative to act swiftly to protect their personnel, address business challenges and risks, and also assist Government efforts to help alleviate Covid-19 impacts.