Govt joins the rest of the world to commemorate World Health Day

The Ministry of Health and Child Care (MoHCC) joins the rest of the world to mark World Health Day 2022. This year’s theme “Our planet: Our health” advocates for global attention on urgent actions needed to keep humans and the planet healthy and foster a movement to create societies focused on well-being.

Climate change is the single biggest health threat facing humanity contributing to environmental risks that are killing around 13 million people every year. Zimbabwe has not been spared from the devastating impacts of climate change with heavy rainfalls, characterized by floods and cyclones as well as droughts.

“Climate Change has the potential to stall the country’s development, pose a serious risk to food security, health, and adaptive capacity. Our Government has shown its commitment to address climate change through our National Climate Change Response Strategy (NCCRS) which seeks to establish specific provisions for dealing with climate changes issues, understanding the extent of the threat, and putting in place specific actions to manage potential impacts. In addition, our commitment to develop a climate-resilient Zimbabwe has also been demonstrated by the elevation of the Climate Change Office into a fully-fledged Climate Change Department,” noted Health and Child Care deputy minister John Mangwiro.

According to the meteorological services of Zimbabwe, since 1987 the country has experienced its six warmest years on record, with daily minimum and maximum temperatures having risen by approximately 2°C over the past century. This has seen the country experience extremes of weather over the past two decades. We have had to deal with 10 droughts, decreased freshwater and destroyed biodiversity.

“Children and young people are the most vulnerable to the effects of climate change which are becoming more widespread. As extreme weather events such as cyclones, droughts and heat waves increase in frequency and ferocity, we are seeing the impact on access to water, food and implication for the nutrition of children. While Unicef acknowledges the Climate Change Response Strategy of the government, I call on relevant authorities to put in place risk-informed policies and programmes that place the issues of children and the climate at the centre of national strategies,” said Unicef representative, Tajudeen Oyewale.

Due to climate change, Zimbabwe experienced the cyclone Idai in 2019 which affected more than 270 000 people, killing over 341 people, and destroying infrastructure, including clinics. The country also suffered the tropical cyclones Anna amongst other climate shocks, signaling an urgent need for all stakeholders to respond to the climate change challenges.

In Zimbabwe, if not mitigated, climate change will cause average temperatures to rise by about 3°C before the end of this century. Annual rainfall could decline by between 5% and 18%, especially in the south. Rainfall will become more variable. There will be an increase in droughts, floods and storms. This will affect Zimbabwe’s food, security, health, energy supply and the economy.

Paul Chinakidzwa, MoHCC health promotion manager; Tatenda Ann Chimbwanda, communications officer (WHO), Yves Willemot, chief communication, Unicef Zimbabwe