By Derrick Silimina
Zambia is grappling with one of its worst cholera outbreaks in recent years as more than 350 people have died and nearly 10,000 active cases have been registered.
As a result, lady-driven businesses are in danger of closure or failure after the negative impact of cholera and the Covid-19 pandemic, the Zambia Federation of Associations of Women in Business (ZFAWIB) now fears.
ZFAWIB have expressed concern that barely two years out of the Covid-19 experience, the cholera outbreak has financially stressed local businesses, especially those run by women.
“We are foreseeing a situation where most female-run businesses will fail to grow, worse still shutting down over the years after Covid-19 and cholera outbreak coupled with the high cost of doing business,” ZFAWIB Chief Executive Officer Maureen Sumbwe says.
She urges women in business to be resilient and “think outside the box” if they are to rebound because millionaires are usually made amidst crisis.
Sumbwe has implored Government to come up with a deliberate business policy that will help cushion female-run businesses amid calamities if they are to continue contributing effectively to the country’s national coffers.
“We appreciate the Government's concerted efforts to have local SMEs access finance but we also anticipate a situation where our locally-produced goods may be promoted for them to access markets locally and internationally.”
WATER
Commonly known as a disease of poverty affecting people with inadequate access to safe water and basic sanitation, cholera is spread by consuming contaminated water or food, and causes severe dehydration from vomiting and diarrhoea. Left untreated, it can kill within hours.
As health workers scramble to contain the crisis that has the potential to be the worst the country has seen since the first in 1977, financial experts say the epidemic is likely going to negatively affect the country’s already struggling economy.
“Cholera is forcing the Government to spend more resources to try and deal with the public health crisis in an already stressed health sector. This epidemic is also slowing down an industry which is already growing, especially the hospitality and recreation sectors which are forced to slow down their activities,” observes Lusaka based economist Munyumba Mutwale.
Mutwale argues that cholera is a drainage and sanitation issue that ought to have been resolved a long time ago in lower income areas by converting human waste into raw materials for charcoal industries. Such industries would create a sustainable business model and in turn put free toilets and sanitation facilities in lower economic areas thereby knocking out cholera once and for all.
He notes that it is high time the local authorities consider drainages and toilets to be of economic value, as well as set up modern markets where refuse disposal is channeled to paper and plastic recycling industries.
OUTBREAKS
According to the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, Zambia is among 18 countries in the world experiencing cholera outbreaks. Studies of cholera epidemics in Zambia and elsewhere suggest that such costs can be significant—up to 2 percent of a country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
In response to a surge in cholera cases, the Government recently announced the deferment of the 2024 Term One schools opening from the scheduled January 8 to January 29, emphasizing the need to prevent and mitigate the spread of the disease.
“This postponement applies to all public, private, aided, and community learning institutions, including Early Childhood Education (ECE) centers, primary, and secondary schools. Learners at all levels are expected to resume classes on January 29, 2024, after a three-week extension from the initial opening date,” Education Minister Douglas Syakalima recently said.
The education sector has also been affected, especially private-owned institutions whose budgets have now been disrupted, as many of them expect tuition fees from learners to help finance their operations.
“Our operations here are solely dependent on the school fees that we collect from our learners, so this deferment has really affected our school budget, making it difficult to pay our staff, pay utility bills and rentals along other bills with or without an outbreak of cholera,” says Clement Mugala, a school administrator based in Lusaka.
CLEANING UP
Certainly, the cholera outbreak does not only pose a health risk but also poses an economic risk as the cleaning up of the informal trading areas has brought many small businesses to a halt.
This has negatively impacted SMEs that depend on Lusaka’s Central Business District (CBD) and surrounding areas for trade.
A check at Lusaka’s sprawling Matebeto market, renowned for its mouthwatering cuisine, found the eatery with scant customers. The place usually swarms with enthusiasts of traditional meals.
“When business is at its peak and on a good day, I usually make between three thousand and five thousand kwacha. But now, since the onset of cholera, I make less than one thousand because clients are hesitant to come to order food,” moans Agness Chibwe, a restaurateur at the Thornpark market.
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