Zimbabwe

Emergency declared over cholera as new banknotes released

Article published on the 2008-12-04 Latest update 2008-12-04 10:55 TU

Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe
(Credit: Reuters)

Zimbabwe has declared a national emergency as a cholera epidemic claims 565 lives and the UN humanitarian organisation says there were 12,546 recorded cases.  Amid rampant inflation, the government has released new banknotes, including one worth 100 million Zimbabwe dollars.

Zimbabwe has asked for international help to deal with a cholera epidemic which has spread across the country. The government has called for international aid, following the deaths of more than 560 people and an acceptance that hospitals are not working, .

The Zimbabwe Association of Doctors for Human Rights claimed that the state of emergency was long overdue and "central hospitals are literally not functioning" according to Health Minister David Parirenyatwa.

Hospitals are in urgent need of drugs, food and equipment, while health workers are on strike over pay.

Attempts to contain the outbreak by cutting the water supplies, led to Zimbabweans digging shallow wells or buying from street hawkers, as no viable alternative was provided.

Hyperinflation continues to hamper the lives of people across the country and the government has increased the withdrawal limit for bank account holders and introduced a series of new banknotes.

Some believe this has come too late, as "it may not have as much of an impact as would have been the case some months ago," says John Robertson, an analyst at Robertson Economic Services in Harare.

New notes including 100 million, 50 million and 10 million will be released into circulation, but this is unlikely to help combat the increasing price of basic food items. People are turning to alternatives such as, "the hard boiled egg index, the price of seven eggs, which is roughly the value of one US dollar", Robertson told RFI.

There have been reports of protests over the inability to withdraw money and Thursday, 16 soldiers were detained over looting in and around Harare. According to local media, the soldiers beat up illegal currency dealers and stole goods from several shops.

The epidemic and the country's financial problems are putting pressure on President Robert Mugabe and the opposition MDC to move forward and agree on a unity government after the agreement signed in September.