Link to article: https://allafrica.com/stories/202510290484.html
The article talks about the misconception that Cholera is a medical problem when in reality its a political one. They make this argument by pointing out that the UK and the US have not had outbreaks for over a century. The authors go onto say that Cholera is not an issue due to science or the lack of solutions, but it continues to be a problem due to leaders failing to be urgent and committed to stopping the breakouts. The authors then point out that there is only one company (EUBiologics) that is producing enough Cholera vaccines to help replenish the stock pile of which 75% has been used over the past four years. Finally they talk about the introduction of Chinese investors (JIJIA Medical Technology Company) that are going to build labs that are able to produce the Cholera vaccines inside of Zambia, this will be the first time that the vaccines are made inside of the continent.
I think the authors are completely right when they blame the corrupt leaders of these African nations for not responding in a capacity that would eradicate the disease from the continent. We look at the western nations that are not having these problems and they eradicated the disease by creating things like water treatment plants and better infrastructure in general. So seeing the disease still run rampant in Zambia and in its neighbors highlights the corruption that has plagued the region for some time now. Without movement to take the steps necessary to eradicate the disease Zambia and its neighbors will continue to lose citizens and their development will be undermined.
For the Africans, specifically Zambia, there are two ways that they could go realistically. For one, they could continue relying on western powers to help them with outbreaks. Or, they could do what Zambia is trying to do, invest in the necessary areas to eradicate Cholera. The WHO and the ICG are going to continue giving out vaccines and caring for the sick. Since they are NGOs there isn’t much that they can do. Lastly, China is going to make it a priority to help the Zambians to create their own vaccines, this is due to them not only get a chance to invest in an area of the world that they have been trying to gain control over for years now, but they get a chance to boost their image in the minds of Africans by painting them as someone who wants to help save African lives.
First, I can see soft power all over the place. Most notably with the Chinese, they aren’t threatening anyone nor saying that they want to install military bases, they are just saying that they want to help the Zambians with stopping Cholera. Making themselves look much more attractive to other African nations. I also can see the connection to NGOs, the involvement of the WHO and the ICG have made notable impacts on the situation and its outcome.