Five Oxford students are part of a global group of Zimbabwean students and young professionals who have founded the Zimbabwe Covid-19 Support Hub. The website pools data, advice, and support information to amplify the Zimbabwean government and civil society’s responses to coronavirus.
About 30 Zimbabwean volunteers use their expertise in programming, communication, economics, law, and other fields to run the website. The Oxford students are postgraduates originally from Zimbabwe: Terrens Muradzikwa from Keble College, Prince Abudu and Itai Muzhingi from Balliol College, and Jason Brickhill and Ngoni Mugwisi from Trinity College.
They collect and share information from authoritative sources, including accurate health advice, government information on the spread of the virus in Zimbabwe, and government measures. The website also collates details about how to access and support community-based projects, and the organisations to contact for assistance.
Muradzikwa explained to Cherwell how the website will support Zimbabwe’s response to coronavirus: “One, through busting fake news by sharing verified and accessible COVID-19 information in local languages such as Shona, Ndebele and Kalanga. We have translated expert-reviewed information from various sources such as the Ministry of Health, WHO, and COVID-19 Health Literacy Project. We have been distributing this information over our website and social media channels reaching over 100,000 people.
