Harare Mobilises Community Defenders to Halt Post-Flood Disease Threat

By Kudzaishe Chimonera

Eighty community health volunteers have been deployed across parts of Harare Metropolitan Province as authorities and aid partners move to prevent a surge in waterborne diseases after recent flash floods.

The emergency response is being led by the Community Water Alliance (CWA) working with Oxfam, the Start Network and the City of Harare in some of the areas most vulnerable to outbreaks — Ruwa, Epworth and Chitungwiza.

The volunteers, most of them women and young people have completed intensive training designed to help families protect themselves from illnesses such as cholera and other water-related infections.

CWA director Hardlife Mudzingwa said the programme was built around empowering communities to act quickly when risks are highest.

“Following the recent flash floods across Harare Metropolitan Province, we stepped up emergency WASH response efforts to safeguard families from waterborne diseases,” he said.

Training sessions which began earlier this week in Kuwadzana covered household water treatment, safe storage, handwashing techniques and basic germ theory, helping volunteers understand how contamination spreads.

Mudzingwa said the community-led approach ensures that vital health information reaches vulnerable households faster.

“Through practical training, we are equipping volunteers not just with knowledge but with confidence and tools to become frontline defenders of public health,” he said.

The volunteers have since begun door-to-door awareness campaigns in flood-affected neighbourhoods, encouraging residents to adopt safe hygiene practices.

To strengthen the response, CWA is also distributing hygiene and water safety kits to 375 households in each targeted area. Community roadshows are being held to widen access to essential WASH information.

Mudzingwa said the initiative is part of the Waterborne Disease Outbreak Anticipatory Action and Response Programme for Harare Metropolitan.

“This lifesaving intervention is aimed at reducing the risk of cholera and other waterborne diseases during emergencies by turning knowledge into protection and communities into the first line of defence,” he said.