Attachments
Highlights
- Resurgence of cholera occurred in November 2024, resulting in a cumulative 740 cholera cases and twenty cholera deaths with a case fatality of 2.7 per cent as of 30 April 2025.
- Zimbabwe recorded 59,647 malaria cases and 143 malaria deaths with a case fatality rate (CFR) of 0.27 per cent surpassing 2024 reported cases by more than 200 per cent.
- Zimbabwe experienced normal to above-normal rainfall, which led to flash flooding while strong winds and torrential rains caused infrastructure damage in schools. A total of 92 schools have been damaged since the start of the rainy season.
- Admissions for treatment of severe wasting for children aged 6 to 59 months have remained stable compared to the increases seen during the 2015-2016 El Niño drought.
- A total of 85,426 people (21,850 women, 18,685 men, 23,899 girls, and 20,992 boys) were reached with safe water in cholera and drought-affected areas.
- UNICEF continued implementing school feeding interventions in five districts severely affected by the El Niño-induced drought.
Funding Overview and Partnerships
'UNICEF Zimbabwe launched a Humanitarian Action for Children (HAC) appeal requiring USD36.5 million to meet the humanitarian needs of children and their families in 38 high-priority districts of Zimbabwe in 20251. The critical interventions sought to address the needs of children and families in the areas of health, nutrition, water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH), education, child protection and social protection, while integrating the HIV response, risk communication and community engagement and the response to gender-based violence.
In addition to the lifesaving interventions, the funding will increase technical and financial support to government-led national and subnational coordination structures to deliver multisectoral life-saving services and mainstream social and behaviour change, accountability to affected populations, gender equality and protection from sexual exploitation and abuse across its interventions. Additionally, the resource will be utilized to strengthen community resilience and climate-adapted interventions for suitability and improve the resilience of communities.
Since January 2025, UNICEF Zimbabwe has received a total of USD2.2 million (7 per cent of the total funding requirement) from the UNICEF Global Humanitarian Thematic Funds and the Japan Supplementary Budget. The funding is being utilized to reach cholera, El Niño induced drought and floods-affected communities with interventions in WASH, Health, Nutrition, Child Protection, Education, Social Protection as well as Risk Communication and Community Engagement (RCCE).