As the country continues to fight against the spread of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) which is now a global pandemic, debate has arisen on whether the country should proactively declare a country wide lockdown, implement a Lusaka city lockdown or simply continue with the current step by step measure prescriptions.
A lock down is an emergency protocol usually for an initial period of about 14 days to prevent people from leaving an area for reasons of protecting them from a threat. There have been calls from some sections of society and some members of the public following the trend were other countries have implemented lockdown measures.
With lockdowns showing challenges of implementation such as the practicality of social distancing for high density areas and markets, economic inequities with a significant share of the Zambian population who survive from hand to mouth requiring daily economic activity and revenue generation, the debate has continued with some sections of society insisting that government should proactively proceed to restrict people from conducting their daily activities with a view of mitigating the spread of Coronavirus via a lockdown.
The question is whether Zambia should implement the lockdown now or continue with its current step by step daily briefs and step up measures being advised. The difficult part is that this is uncharted territory and there are limited sources for sound information on how best to deal with the pandemic, even more advanced economies seem to unsure of which methods to implement.
From large to small companies and businesses, it’s clear that a lockdown will further strain their abilities to continue as going concerns due to fixed costs. Speaking to the Zambian Business Times – ZBT in an exclusive interview, Trade Kings Group Engineer and spokesperson Ernest Mande on March 27th 2020 explained that a total lock down will further weaken the economy which has already been struggling to recover.
Mande stated that a total lockdown will bring the entire economy to a halt. He said that the manufacturing sector is important to the contribution of the country’s sustenance and growth, hence closing down its activities will not only pose a threat on the economy, but affect the industrial chain that includes Small and Medium Enterprises – SME’s who are the majority contributors to the country’s economy.
“SME’s will become economic victims of the lockdown, meaning they will not be able to sustain themselves if their businesses are not running. Government is systematically moving forward and its approach on the preventive measures provided will help curb the spread of this disease, if only we as individuals take it upon ourselves to help fight this virus,” he added.
For medical experts and scientist, saving lives should be the first priority even at a cost of crashing down the economy. They have argued that any delays in declaring a lockdown may end up resulting into the disease spreading even further and beyond control.
A medical doctor and health expert talked to by ZBT Dr. Aaron Mujajati said it is difficult to keep the economy running at a cost of losing lives adding that the disease is now know to have the ability to spread at a much faster rate hence critical actions need to be taken before the situation worsens.
“Even if we decide not to shut the economy now, be rest assured that the disease will do it for us at same point as seem from the numbers which keep increasing day by day. Therefore, stringent measures need to be taken before lives are lost in the name of keeping the economy going,” Dr. Mujajati told ZBT.
President Edgar Lungu has indicated that Zambia being a landlocked country, is already under a lockdown as some of the its neighboring countries have already closed borders. He stated that the country cannot afford to declare a total lock down but will continue to upscale its efforts to contain the spread of COVID-19 within the country.
Cases of COVID-19 are increasing across the world and Zambia is among the countries battling to fight this disease by putting in place preventive measures and scaling up efforts for containing the spread of the virus, there is need for all citizens to get informed and engaged on how best each individual can prevent getting the virus.
For now, the decision on whether to proceed with a total lockdown lies with President Lungu and council of ministers led by the veep, Madam Inonge Wina working with other select team of ministers that includes health minister Dr. Chitalu Chilufya. They have a team of experts who are advising them on measures to take and the best approach. But the call is on all to do their part and avoid getting and spreading the coronavirus.
