Zimbabwe records first swine flu cases

Zimbabwe has recorded its first two cases of the deadly influenza HINI commonly known as swine flu fuelling fears the southern African country will not be ready to deal with an outbreak because of a collapsed health infrastructure.

Neighbouring South Africa, which hosts the biggest number of Zimbabwean immigrants, has already recorded more than 50 cases and rate of infections is giving health experts across the Limpopo River sleepless nights because of the high number of people travelling between the two countries.

Zimbabwe's state media on Thursday reported that a man of Asian origin who recently arrived in the country from London had tested positive for the virus and was quarantined at a house in Harare.

However, the Minister of Health and Child Welfare, Dr Henry Madzorera could only confirm the case of an 18 year old squash player who is now undergoing treatment in South Africa.

"Yes there is an 18-year-old athlete playing squash who among others, was diagnosed with the infection. He is being treated in South Africa," Dr Madzorera told the Herald newspaper.

He said the ministry was investigating whether the athlete who was part of a group that tested positive contracted the disease in Zimbabwe or South Africa.

He said Zimbabwe, which is emerging from almost a decade of economic turmoil was prepared to fight the epidemic.

We have 21,400 courses of drugs to treat swine flu. These are enough to treat 21,400 people. That is what we are holding just in case anything happens, Dr Madzorera said.

The World Health Organisation (WHO), which declared swine flu a pandemic, making it the first outbreak to be classified as such in 41 years, provided the drugs to help fight the disease globally.

The outbreak began in Mexico and so far infections in the United States, Europe, Australia, South America and elsewhere have climbed to more than 94,500 cases with 425 deaths.

For more than six months from August last year, Zimbabwe battled a serious cholera outbreak that left close to 1000 people dead.