Baghdad / – The World Health Organization announced the outbreak of a cholera epidemic in at least 31 countries this year, putting about one billion people at risk of contracting the disease around the world.
Tedros Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organization, said in a speech before representatives of diplomatic missions in Geneva: “We should have defeated this disease a long time ago, but in fact it is growing.”
The Director-General confirmed that the number of reports of cholera in 2022 doubled compared to 2021, and “this year will be worse.”
He said: “At least 31 countries witnessed a cholera outbreak in 2023, and one billion people are at risk.”
Ghebreyesus added: “What is most worrying is the current outbreak of the disease in Burundi, Cameroon, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Tanzania, Sudan, Syria and Zimbabwe. In southern Africa, great progress has been made in controlling the disease, but the rainy season increases the risk of a serious outbreak of the disease, and raises concern, in particular, the resurgence of the disease this year in countries that eliminated cholera many years ago.”
The Director-General drew attention to the significant shortage of vital supplies, including the oral cholera vaccine.
Ghebreyesus called on the international community to raise $160 million to combat cholera.
According to a World Health Organization bulletin issued in early October in Geneva, the number of cholera cases has exceeded 582,000 since the beginning of the year, and more than 4.5 thousand people have died from the disease.
Source: National Iraqi News Agency