Vaccine shortage and thousands of deaths.
Cholera is classified as a global emergency of the highest degree.
– It is extremely terrifying and completely overwhelming, says Machinda Marongwe, program manager for Oxfam.
Cholera cases skyrocketed last year, according to preliminary data from the WHO. In total, over 4,000 deaths and 667,000 infections were recorded globally, reports The Guardian.
Cholera cases have increased worldwide since 2021, and 2023’s figures were significantly higher than the year before. The WHO classifies the global resurgence of cholera as a Grade 3 emergency – the organization’s highest internal health crisis.
The outbreaks were by far deadliest in Malawi and Haiti, where the death toll reached 1,771 and 1,156 respectively, making it the worst outbreak in Malawi’s history.
– The unprecedented rate of cases and deaths is absolutely terrifying and completely overwhelming for the health systems of these countries, says Machinda Marongwe, Program Manager for Oxfam in Southern Africa.
– The outbreak is escalating into an uncontrollable health crisis, Marongwe continues.
Schools close – people move
At least 30 other countries have reported cholera cases since the beginning of 2024, writes The Guardian. Zambia has reported 7,500 new cases since October and 500 new cases and 17 deaths in just 24 hours last week.
Zambia’s president, Hakainde Hichilema, has urged people to move from the cities and back to the countryside – and schools remain closed to prevent further spread.
At least three people have died in a violent outbreak in northern Mozambique last week, as angry residents burned buildings amid accusations that the government had deliberately spread the disease.
Vaccine shortage by 2025
Considering the spread of the outbreak to new countries and the global shortage of cholera vaccine, the WHO states that the risk level for cholera is still considered to be “very high”, writes The Guardian.
The global vaccine shortage is expected to last at least until 2025.
Cholera is an acute diarrheal disease that spreads through contaminated drinking water and can kill within hours if left untreated. Mortality is particularly high among children and especially among children under five years of age.