Gweru district recorded 21 malaria cases and one fatality during the first half this year, prompting health authorities to call for broader strategic interventions to curb the disease outbreak.
According to reports, the recorded death occurred on May 22 at Shamrock Mine in Lower Gweru.
Gweru district environmental health officer, Constance Gumbo said the outbreak was a cause of concern, particularly in an area traditionally known to record near-zero malaria infection rates.
“The 21 cases are a cause of concern because they are more than what we usually record for the whole year,” Gumbo said.
“In the first six months alone, we have recorded more than double our usual annual figures.
“We are one of the districts in the malaria pre-elimination phase in Zimbabwe and we are not supposed to be recording cases from people who have not travelled to malaria endemic areas.”
Gumbo was speaking at the ministry of Health and Child Care stakeholders meeting for Human Papillomavirus (HPV) and Tetanus-Diphtheria held recently in the Midlands capital.
Dstrict health promotion officer, Lameck Govere, described the single death as “one too many” before calling for strengthening of malaria preventive measures.
“Our investigations have revealed that Gweru now has mosquitoes carrying malaria parasites,” he said.
“There is therefore need to strengthen malaria prevention and control activities.
“We used to believe that Gweru was free from malaria but that is no longer the case.”
District medical officer, Kundai Guveya said health teams will work closely with other stakeholders to deploy targetted interventions especially within the informal and formal mining sectors of Lower Gweru.