Cholera outbreak kills 9 in DR Congo’s Haut-Lomami Province

ByJoy

Dec 17, 2021

A member of the Congolese Red Cross explains the symptoms, risks and precautions of cholera to children in Kinshasa on January 18, 2018. The World Health Organization (WHO) on January 15 said there was a high risk of a cholera epidemic after flooding in Kinshasa, the teeming and ramshackle capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo. Beyond the capital, the latest cholera outbreak has affected 23 of the 26 provinces in the vast central African country since 2017, with "almost 50,000 cases and around 1,000 deaths", MSF estimates. Such figures make it the worst outbreak in DR Congo since 1994. / AFP PHOTO / JOHN WESSELS

Nine people have died of cholera in the Democratic Republic of Congo’s Haut-Lomami Province.

Doctors without Borders (Médecins Sans Frontières) have warned that more lives could be lost due to lack of basic health services in Mulongo area.

In Kabamba region of Mulongo, the current epicenter of the epidemic, MSF has set up a cholera treatment center with a capacity of 30 beds in Mulongo.

Two cholera treatment units were also set up in Ngoya and Bukena health centers, to curb the spread of the disease. It appears the region faces an acute lack of health personnel and facilities.

“The MSF cannot do everything, it is important to call on other organisations and partners to respond to the multiple needs of the population, particularly in the water, hygiene and sanitation sector,” said Clément Shap, Médecins Sans Frontières’ project coordinator in Haut-Lomami Province.

The East Africa