Zimbabwe

Since we began working in
Zimbabwe, during the 2008–2009
cholera epidemic, International
Medical Corps has delivered quality
health and nutrition services in foodinsecure rural areas while improving
nutrition and helping to reduce
the spread of waterborne diseases
through water, sanitation andhygiene (WASH) practices among
underserved populations.

In 2013, we increased our development-oriented
programming as part of a consortium in which
International Medical Corps led the health, nutrition
and WASH components. Today, our teams continue
to improve maternal and child health, nutrition
and WASH in communities and health facilities
while strengthening local healthcare systems,
training local healthcare workers, preventing
and responding to gender-based violence (GBV)
and improving overall self-reliance throughcommunity engagement.

Zimbabwe’s health delivery system
continues to face challenges causedby the 2000 economic downturn
when health personnel left the country
in droves to seek work in morestable economies.

CH

In 2019, Zimbabwe’s neonatal mortality rate rose to 32
per 1,000 live births, far exceeding the World HealthOrganization (WHO) target of 12 per 1,000 live births.
Zimbabwe’s maternal mortality ratio also remains high, at357 per 100,000 live births, exceeding the WHO target of
70 per 100,000 live births.
Zimbabwe faces severe challenges with access to WASH,
with an estimated 40% of rural households lacking accessto essential water services. The same percentage of ruralcommunities lack access to improved sanitation, while
29% of the rural population practice open defecation andapproximately 93% lack access to handwashing facilities.
As a result of these challenges, Zimbabwe’s health systems
struggle to combat diseases such as cholera, typhoidand dysentery.
Climate change exacerbates these challenges. Modelsand projections show that climate change decreases
access to water, negatively affects nutrition and increases
the incidence of multiple diseases. In addition, climaterelated emergencies—including cyclones, drought andfloods—also present significant challenges to the people
and infrastructure of Zimbabwe. Extreme weather events—
spanning from Cyclone Leon–Eline in 2000 to Cyclone
Freddy in 2023—have caused considerable damage. If
climate change continues at its current pace, its effects will
likely delay any increase in Zimbabwe’s life expectancy ofapproximately 62 years.

DEFB
GA

JI

WHERE WE CURRENTLY WORKMASVINGOA

BIKITA

BGUTU

MATABELELANDNORTHMATABELELAND
SOUTH

C

BINGA

I

BEITBEIDGEDHWANGEJGWANDAE

LUPANE

F

NKAYI

G

TSHOLOTSHOH

VICTORIA FALLSOUR IMPACT
We have reached more than

114,000 PREGNANT AND
LACTATING WOMEN
and more than

153,000 CHILDREN
through supplementary-feeding
programs.

WATER, SANITATION AND HYGIENE (WASH)
Since 2017, International Medical Corps has supported all 16
districts and the Bulawayo Metropolitan province by improving
access to WASH facilities and providing training sessions on WASH
behaviors and practices, including water conservation. Our teams
have rehabilitated more than 140 waterpoints, and solarized morethan 20 community waterpoints (boreholes and springs). Our work
to improve the supply of clean water has created access for morethan 80,000 community members since 2017. Between 2020 and2023, we conducted WASH rehabilitations in nearly 40 healthcare
facilities, using the WHO’s Water and Sanitation for Health FacilityImprovement Tool (WASH FIT) to improve the quality of care andIPC practices.
International Medical Corps is the provincial focal point for WASH inMatabeleland South, where—in collaboration with the MoHCC—wehelped develop the official WASH in healthcare facilities guidelines
for Zimbabwe. Our work has improved access to water in nearly 50
healthcare facilities in Matabeleland North and Matabeleland South.

MATERNAL AND CHILD HEALTH SERVICES
To reduce maternal and newborn mortality rates in Binga andNkayi districts of Matabeleland North, International Medical Corps
constructed eight, and rehabilitated 10, waiting mother homes. At
Nkayi and Binga hospitals, we established two nutrition gardensthat provide vegetables for pregnant mothers. We also trained morethan 40 health staff and nearly 300 village health workers on infant
and young-child feeding (IYCF) practices.
Since 2013, International Medical Corps has promoted care groups
through the USAID Food for Peace program in Binga, Bulilima,Gwanda, Hwange, Lupane, Mangwe, Nkayi and Tsholotsho districts.
Our staff trains community health workers to adopt IYCF and othercare practices to promote nutrition for pregnant and lactating
women and children during the critical period between conception
and a child’s second birthday. We are developing and integratingclimate change content into our health and nutrition messaging forcommunity health workers.

TRAINING HEALTHCARE WORKERSCOMMUNITY ENGAGEMENTInternational Medical Corps provides intensive training to
district-level health staff and village health workers on active
screening for acute malnutrition, WASH and preventing
chronic malnutrition. We also train village health workers
on health services; hygiene promotion; maternal nutrition;
IYCF; and obstetric and newborn care (BEmONC). To reduce
health-facility-acquired infections, our staff has trained nearly
600 frontline healthcare workers on infection prevention andcontrol (IPC), and distributed personal protective equipment,clothing, cleaning and disinfection kits to healthcare facilities.
Today, we are also adding climate-related health risks to thehealthcare worker training program.

International Medical Corps works with community healthclubs (CHCs) to promote health and hygiene educationand WASH practices. We have trained approximately 100
environmental health technicians on health and hygiene; theyhave trained more than 1,400 community-based facilitators,
who in turn have reached more than 29,000 CHC members.
Our promotion of integrated internal savings and lending
among CHCs to finance latrine construction has led to theconstruction of more than 2,600 latrines. We have also worked
with more than 10,000 community-level volunteers to promotecomplementary feeding practices, maternal nutrition andoptimal hygiene practices. To date, we have reached morethan 300,000 people with messages on optimal nutrition.

www.InternationalMedicalCorps.org
A pre-eminent first responder since 1984, International
Medical Corps delivers emergency medical and related
services to those affected by conflict, disaster, anddisease, no matter where they are, no matter what theconditions. We also train people in their communities,
providing them with the skills they need to recover, chart
their own path to self-reliance, and become effective
first responders themselves.
February 2024

HEADQUARTERS
CONTACT:

Paula Olson, Deputy Director, HQ Programs
polson@InternationalMedicalCorps.org

International Medical Corps is headquartered in Los Angeles, CA, and has
offices in Washington, DC; London, UK; and Split, Croatia.
For contact information, visit InternationalMedicalCorps.org/contact.