Barriers and Enablers to Covid-19 Coordination and Response in Zimbabwe. Case of Zvimba Rural District

Abstract

Different interventions were adopted and established by government of Zimbabwe to control and prevent the spread of COVID-19 in the country. Even if these interventions were in place, new cases of COVID-19 continued to be recorded in the country every day. This study presents an investigation on barriers and enablers to COVID-19 coordination and response in Zimbabwe, case of Zvimba district. A descriptive survey design was used in this study and purposive sampling was used to select a sample size of 35 heads of coordination structures. Data was collected using questionnaires and key informant interview guides. Data was then captured and analyzed using Excel. About 60% of the selected participants were men while 40% were females. Results of the research showed a positive relationship between broad, grassroots stakeholder involvement and resourcefulness on one hand and positive outcome of COVID-19 coordination and response. Key enablers to COVID-19 coordination and response included involvement of key stakeholders particularly grassroots community structures and leadership. The stakeholders had clearly delineated roles and functions that worked in a complementary way. Key COVID-19 information was effectively disseminated through community champions who formed the bedrock of the health delivery system. This was complemented by use of social media riding on the penetration of the modern telephony technology in rural areas. Despite positive factors that enhanced success, negative COVID-19 myths, misconceptions and misinformation undermined coordination and response efforts. For example, there was low risk perception among rural communities. These included the belief that Blacks were immune to the pandemic and that COVID-19 was an “urban disease”. As a result, there was resistance to taking COVID-19 vaccines and inconsistent compliance with government and WHO COVID- 19 protocols. Based on the findings, it was recommended that strengthening grassroots structures and institutions are key attributes to effective response to COVID-19 and addressing myths, misconceptions and misinformation should be an integral part of COVID-19 response and any other epidemic as these may undermine response efforts.