COVID-19 Manifestation, Ramifications and Future Prospects for Zimbabwe

A Multi-disciplinary Perspective

edited by Alexander Madanha Rusero and Munyaradzi Mawere

The advent of Coronavirus (also known as COVID-19) pandemic has caused much distress, despondence, fear and pandemonium across all nations of the world. In Zimbabwe, the emergence of the virus sent a chilling message of insecurity and need for conscientiousness and diligence, as the virus decimated humankind amid untold suffering. The pandemic came as a litmus test for the integrity and meticulousness of all the so-called professionals and institutions of integrity across the country, challenging them to stand equal to their tasks, titles and claimed astuteness. For Zimbabwe and Africa in general, the manifestation and ramifications of COVID-19, has raised so many questions around issues of people’s welfare and innovative research, especially amid the reality that the country is dependent on charity and donations from well-wishers for the vaccines it needs, over and above the modest amount it can purchase. This reality and related challenges pose interesting research questions addressed in this volume. A central question on the possibility and extent of home-grown solutions inspired by and tailored to the needs and predicaments of Zimbabwe and the African continent. The richness of the book is in the firsthand eyewitness accounts of scholars caught up in the COVID-19 challenge. The researchers in this volume have sought to capture developments, insights and evolutions as they unfold and progress. The book is handy for scholars in policy studies, risk and disaster management, social anthropology, political science, development studies, African studies and decolonial fields of studies. 

Alexander Madanha Rusero

Alexander Madanha Rusero is a university lecturer of Politics, International Relations and Media Studies with more than 12 years’ experience. He has taught in several institutions in Zimbabwe, including Harare Polytechnic, Africa University and Great Zimbabwe University.

Munyaradzi Mawere

Munyaradzi Mawere is a Professor in the Simon Muzenda School of Arts, Culture and Heritage Studies at Great Zimbabwe University. He holds a PhD in Social Anthropology; a Master’s Degree in Social Anthropology; a second Master’s Degree in Philosophy; a third Master’s Degree in Development Studies; BA (Hons) Degree in Philosophy; Certificate in Tertiary and Higher Learning; Certificate in Information Technology; and a Certificate in Diplomacy, Negotiation and Bargaining. He is an author of more than 50 books and over 200 academic publications straddling the following areas: poverty and development studies, African philosophy, cultural philosophy, democracy, politics of food production, humanitarianism and civil society organisations, urban anthropology, existential anthropology, environmental anthropology, society and politics, religion, decoloniality and African studies.