Zimbabwe’s Ministry of Health and Child Care has sounded the alarm after its weekly disease surveillance report for the period ending October 5, 2025, revealed a surge in cases and deaths from influenza and malaria, alongside continued high levels of dysentery and common diarrhoea across the country.

The report reveals a concerning week where two deaths from influenza were recorded at Sally Mugabe Central Hospital in Harare, contributing to the staggering 12 new malaria fatalities reported across six different provinces.

Influenza continues to exert a heavy toll, with 5,220 new suspected cases reported this week alone, bringing the cumulative national total for the year to an overwhelming 276,054 cases and six deaths.

Manicaland and Mashonaland West provinces were the epicenters of the latest wave, recording the highest number of suspected cases with 1,884 and 1,556 respectively.

The two recent deaths in Harare Metropolitan Province show the ongoing severity of the respiratory disease.

Malaria remains a critical public health emergency, recording 3,021 new cases and 12 deaths this week. Fatalities were reported across a wide geographic area, including Harare Metropolitan, Mashonaland East, Manicaland, Matabeleland North, Mashonaland West, and Matabeleland South.

Alarmingly, 363 of the new malaria cases were in children under the age of five.

The most affected provinces were Mashonaland East (1,202 cases) and Mashonaland Central (895 cases).

The cumulative malaria toll for 2025 now stands at 147,556 cases and 401 deaths.