rains, climate change, conflicts … 15 countries on the continent are affected. The country of southern Africa knows the deadliest epidemic in all its history.
mo12345lemonde with AFP
The deadliest cholera epidemic ever recorded in Malawi has left 1,210 dead since March 2022, alerted the World Health Organization (WHO) on Thursday, which signals cases in neighboring countries and elsewhere in Africa , by calling for “strong interventions”.
Cholera has been endemic to Malawi since 1998 with outbreaks during the rainy season, from November to May. But the current epidemic has extended to the dry season, according to the latest epidemiological bulletin of the WHO published at its headquarters in Geneva. Nearly 37,000 cases have been reported there since March. During a weekly briefing from Brazzaville, Thursday, February 9, the WHO Regional Africa Regional Office Alarmed by an “exponential increase in the number of notified cholera cases” on the continent.
During the first month of 2023 only, he “has already reached more than 30 % of the total number of cases recorded throughout the year 2022”, specifies WHO Africa. According to estimates, she says, 26,000 cases and 660 deaths had been notified on January 29 in ten African countries affected. In 2022, around 80,000 cases and 1,863 deaths had been recorded in 15 countries. “If the current current trend continues, the number of cases could exceed that recorded in 2021, which was the worst year for cholera in Africa in almost a decade,” said the African Organization office.
The majority of new cases and deaths have been recorded in Malawi, he notes, adding that the neighbors of this country, “in particular Mozambique and Zambia, also pointed out recently”.
In East Africa, adds WHO Africa, “Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia face epidemics in a context of severe and prolonged drought”. Burundi, Cameroon, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Nigeria “have also reported cases”.
“worrying scenario”
“We are witnessing a disturbing scenario in which extreme climatic conflicts and climatic phenomena aggravate the risk factors for cholera,” said the Matshidiso Moeti DRE, WHO Africa Director.
In Malawi, the epidemic was declared “public health emergency” by the government on December 5, 2022. WHO helps the authorities, in particular by providing treatment kits and increasing screening capacities. But “with a strong increase in the cases observed during the last month, it is feared that the epidemic will continue to worsen in the absence of strong interventions,” said WHO in Geneva.
The organization deems “urgent to improve access to drinking water, sanitation and hygiene”. One of the factors contributing to the high rate of lethality in certain regions is the late detection of cases, because the patients present themselves too late in health establishments, explains the WHO. Nearly 3 million people have been vaccinated (oral vaccine) so far. But part of the Malawite population refuses treatments in the name of religious beliefs, which contributes to the spread of the disease.
Cholera is contracted by the ingestion of water or food contaminated by a bacteria. It generally causes diarrhea and vomiting and can be very dangerous for young children. After years of decline, the world faces a resurgence of cholera, favored by the effects of climate change. Currently, 23 countries are experiencing epidemics, according to the WHO.
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This situation limits the availability of vaccines, tests and treatments. The disease threatens more than a billion people worldwide, the head of WHO, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus on Wednesday. The WHO assesses the risk of cholera worldwide as “very high” due to current outbreak in many regions.