{"id":3242,"date":"2016-12-05T22:44:47","date_gmt":"2016-12-06T03:44:47","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.shu.edu\/ghg-development\/?p=3242"},"modified":"2016-12-05T22:44:47","modified_gmt":"2016-12-06T03:44:47","slug":"health-security-and-the-international-politics-of-zimbabwes-cholera-outbreak-2008-09","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.shu.edu\/ghg\/2016\/12\/05\/health-security-and-the-international-politics-of-zimbabwes-cholera-outbreak-2008-09\/","title":{"rendered":"Health Security and The International Politics of Zimbabwe\u2019s Cholera Outbreak, 2008-09"},"content":{"rendered":"
By Simukai Chigudu<\/p>\n
In 2008, Zimbabwe was engulfed by a devastating cholera outbreak resulting in an unprecedented 98,000 cases and over 4,000 deaths. Cholera, however, was much more than a health crisis. The disease signified the nadir of Zimbabwe\u2019s catastrophic political and economic meltdown and became the subject of significant international attention. In this article, I examine the political discourse surrounding cholera and I demonstrate the ways in which the outbreak was framed as a global \u2018health security\u2019 concern. I argue that the securitization of the cholera epidemic actually hampered rather than bolstered political and global health responses to the outbreak. I suggest that political science \u2013 through theoretical and historical insights \u2013 can help us evaluate the conceptual and normative value and limitations of the ubiquitous \u2018health security\u2019 frame in global health governance.<\/em><\/p>\n