MALARIA statistics in Mashonaland West province are continuing to rise well outside the traditional peak season, sparking debate among medical experts over the underlying causes.
While health experts said despite the unseasonal spike being unusual, this points to a combination of climate change, funding shortfalls and improved diagnostic testing as the likely drivers.
The scale of the outbreak is laid bare by recent provincial data showing that out of the 15 230 cases recorded in Mashonaland West, 58 people died, giving a fatality rate of 0,38%.
Former Health and Child Care minister Henry Madzorera said current figures defied historical trends.
“The number of malaria cases continues to be higher than normal in this winter season, which is very unusual,” Madzorera said.
“This is probably due to climate change, which has prolonged the wet season.
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“Because the rains arrived late, the season extended.
“We are going to continue to see these shifting seasonal patterns.”
Madzorera highlighted critical funding gaps, which he said directly crippled preventive field programmes.
“The funding gap created by the withdrawal of partners in the international community has severely affected essential malaria programmes, such as indoor residual household spraying, the provision of anti-malaria medication in villages and the steady availability of testing kits,” he warned.
Health expert Johannes Marisa suggested that the surge may instead be a reflection of better diagnostics or statistical anomalies.
“Statistics can be misleading without proper data collection,” Marisa said.
“Generally, we should see numbers decreasing right now because cold weather creates poor breeding conditions for mosquitoes.”
He added that the availability of improved testing kits could simply mean more cases are being diagnosed.
Medical practitioner and former Chinhoyi Member of Parliament, Peter Matarutse, reminded authorities that some parts of the province are vulnerable all year round.
“In the lowveld areas, malaria is endemic throughout the year,” Matarutse said.
“Because of this, we need to keep our control and treatment programmes on high alert at all times.”
Hurungwe district tops the list of malaria cases, with 6 759 infections.
It is followed by Makonde with 3 680 cases, Sanyati with 1 738 and Zvimba at 1 404.
Despite the concerns raised by independent experts, the Health and Child Care ministry maintained that the situation is coming under control.
Mashonaland West provincial health communications officer George Kambondo insisted that overall numbers are on a downward trajectory when looking at recent daily infections.
“As it stands, daily cases have dramatically reduced,” he said.
“We have dropped from a peak of 200 cases per 24 hours down to just 20 new cases reported in the last 24 hours.”
Health experts urged the public to seek early screening for influenza-like symptoms, warning that the early signs of malaria mimic the common flu.