[3] On 12 January 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) confirmed that a novel coronavirus was the cause of a respiratory illness in a cluster of people in Wuhan City, Hubei Province, China, which was reported to the WHO on 31 December 2019.
[8][6] Model-based simulations for Zimbabwe indicate that the 95% confidence interval for the time-varying reproduction number R t has been stable below 1.0 since June 2021.
Before there were any confirmed cases in the country, President Emmerson Mnangagwa had declared a national emergency, putting in place travel restrictions and banning large gatherings.
[89][90] The country's defence minister, Oppah Muchinguri caused controversy by stating the coronavirus could be a divine punishment on Western nations for imposing sanctions on Zimbabwe.
[100] Prevention and treatment was negatively impacted by a medical workers strike in the first quarter of 2020 due to a lack of PPE.