Over 10 million people vaccinated against cholera in Ethiopia

Addis Ababa: Ethiopia has vaccinated over 10 million people as part of a national campaign to contain the spread of an ongoing cholera outbreak, the World Health Organization (WHO) has said.

In a statement issued Wednesday, the WHO said that two years after the cholera outbreak began in August 2022, the East African country has continued to battle the disease, with a recent increase in the number of cases, Xinhua news agency reported.

A national oral cholera vaccination campaign, launched recently to protect at-risk populations covering 89 districts across eight regions in Ethiopia, has achieved 98.4 per cent coverage, vaccinating over 10.19 million people, it said.

As part of the anti-cholera efforts, multi-sectoral stakeholders have also implemented response measures to contain transmission, including house-to-house disinfection, water testing and treatment, and latrine construction.

The WHO stressed that the lack of funding is severely impeding the coordinated anti-cholera response efforts led by the Ethiopian Public Health Institute.

It called for "extensive investments" in safe water supply and sanitation systems to effectively combat the outbreak.

According to the WHO, Ethiopia has reported 143 cholera-related deaths so far this year, with 19,271 cholera cases reported from January 1 to June 30.

UN agencies and humanitarian partners have been calling for durable solutions to address the root causes of recurrent cholera outbreaks, which include poor-quality drinking water and open defecation.

In most cases, faecal contamination of drinking water is the main source of cholera, with most cholera patients using unsafe drinking water.

Cholera, an acute diarrhoeal infection caused by consuming contaminated food or water, results in acute watery diarrhoea and severe dehydration. The disease can be fatal within hours if untreated.