2023-05-08 10:40:17
By Ilias Khalafi
Since the beginning of the rainy season, several countries in southern Africa have found themselves grappling with an alarming resurgence of the cholera epidemic, exacerbated by the extreme weather conditions that are hitting this part of the globe.
Heavy flooding caused by seasonal rainfall and tropical cyclones has significantly increased the risk of the spread of cholera, threatening to undermine efforts to eradicate this waterborne disease.
This fatal intestinal infection caused by the consumption of food or water contaminated with the bacterium Vibrio cholerae, thus continues to gain ground in the south of the continent, first affecting the most disadvantaged social categories.
In Malawi, one of the world’s poorest countries, the United Nations (UN) has warned that the country is facing the deadliest cholera outbreak in 20 years.
In this country where cholera is endemic, an outbreak of contamination has been observed in recent months, with more than 1,600 deaths and nearly 60,000 cases reported since March 2022, according to data from the World Health Organization (WHO).
Last February, health authorities launched a national campaign called “Tithetse kolera” (End cholera) with the aim of interrupting the transmission of the bacteria and reducing its case fatality rate from 3.2% to less than 1 %, which is considered by the WHO as an indicator of a controlled epidemic.
Read also: Africa: decline in cholera cases but stable deaths and risks due to floods (WHO)
However, the increase in rainfall and the passage of Hurricane Freddy did not allow the expected objectives to be achieved. Response teams are struggling to reach people in need due to impassable roads and damaged infrastructure in some areas.
The situation is no better in neighboring Mozambique, where six of the 11 provinces are affected by the epidemic. Cholera cases in this country located off the Indian Ocean have increased tenfold since February, following the passage of Cyclone Freddy.
The director general of the National Institute of Health, Eduardo Sam Gudo Junior, explained that the floods caused by the cyclone exposed a large number of wells to contaminated water following sewage overflows. Alas, until the broken water pipes are repaired, these wells will remain the only source of water for the local communities.
Zambia was not spared either, the government having declared a cholera epidemic in January, with the first confirmed cases in the districts of Vubwi and Mwansabombwe. Since then, nearly 20 districts have been identified as hotspots with a population of two million people at risk.
The situation has been exacerbated by heavy rains which have caused flash floods in more than 38 districts across the country. This has, once more, compromised water quality and sanitation conditions, increasing the risk of epidemics and waterborne diseases.
In Madagascar, where cholera was last reported in 2000, recent tropical storms, particularly Cheneso which hit the country in January, have raised serious concerns following widespread flooding increased the risk of infection with cholera epidemic.
At least 77 health facilities were destroyed by the flows caused by this storm, depriving more than 470,000 people of access to health services. As for Cyclone Freddy, which swept the Big Island on February 21, it destroyed nearly 29,000 houses in seven of the 23 regions where the conditions of good hygiene were compromised.
As for South Africa, it did not stand out, with 10 confirmed cases of cholera, including one death. However, what has raised more concerns among health authorities in the country is that the majority of cases have been acquired locally.
The worrying resurgence of cholera infections in southern Africa thus raises questions regarding the health system in the countries of this region, particularly in light of the recurrent storms and cyclones which contribute to the acceleration of the spread of waterborne diseases. .
Thus, an effective fight once morest cholera requires strengthening the coordination of countries in the region, particularly at the level of the Southern African Development Community (SADC), by improving detection, response, access to treatment and vaccination, as well as access to drinking water and sanitation.
With MAP
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