Binga families forced to improvise as mortuary crisis deepens

Families in Zimbabwe's remote Binga District are resorting to extreme and improvised methods to preserve the bodies of deceased relatives due to a long-standing breakdown of mortuary services at Binga District Hospital.

Residents say the facility's mortuary has been largely non-functional for years, mainly due to persistent electricity outages and unrepaired refrigeration equipment. As a result, grieving families are using wet sand, banana leaves and even fertiliser to slow decomposition while preparing for burial.

The crisis has now reached Parliament, where Fanuel Cumanzala has formally asked the Minister of Health and Child Care to outline concrete plans to address the situation. However, the inquiry has reportedly gone unanswered since early March.

Community members describe the situation as distressing and undignified. Some families are forced to bury loved ones almost immediately, unable to wait for relatives to travel from distant areas such as Bulawayo. Others attempt to preserve bodies for days using traditional or improvised methods, often with limited success.

The lack of access to functioning mortuary facilities has also highlighted broader challenges at the hospital, including stalled rehabilitation efforts and concerns about healthcare infrastructure in the region.

The situation underscores the growing gap between policy discussions at national level and the harsh realities faced by rural communities, where basic services remain unreliable or unavailable.