The African Center for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) said there were links between climate change, which is hitting Africa hard, and the increase in cholera epidemics on the continent. Bloomberg reports this, citing the director general of the public health agency of the African Union (AU).
“Cholera in Africa is a problem linked to climate change,” said Jean Kaseya, underlining that the increase in the frequency of extreme climatic events such as floods and droughts increases the risk of the spread of this epidemic disease. Since the beginning of 2023, international and African health agencies have reported several cholera outbreaks, in 13 countries in eastern and southern Africa. In the region there have been more than 200,000 cases of cholera and more than 3,000 deaths linked to this infection, caused by the ingestion of food or water contaminated by the bacillus Vibrio cholerae.
Zambia and Zimbabwe are so far hardest hit by the disease, the mortality rate of which can exceed 6% in communities where pre-existing immunity is low due to low vaccination rates and poor general health. The current shortage of cholera vaccines is also hampering efforts to contain recent epidemic waves. “Globally, 15 to 18 million doses are available, while Africa needs 80 million doses. Zambia has purchased 1.7 million doses, but needs 3.2 million. Zimbabwe needs 3.2 million doses but has only obtained 800,000. The DRC is even worse because it needs 5 million doses which it has not been able to access.” [Da Redazione InfoAfrica]
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