The outbreak of cholera in Mozambique has now become an epidemic, authorities have announced. They have also unveiled plans for a mass vaccination campaign in the hardest hit areas, reports news outlet Club of Mozambique.
Speaking at a press conference in Maputo on Thursday, Public Health director Quinhas Fernandes explained that the situation now meets the definition of an epidemic as “we have several outbreaks in several places … at the same time.”
Mozambique recorded 5,661 cases of cholera between 3 October 2025 and 17 February of this year, and 71 deaths. The majority (52) of deaths occurred outside of health units.
Among the hardest hit are the northern provinces of Nampula and Tete, which recorded 2,445 and 2,141 cases respectively. Nearly all diagnosed cases have been in northern and central Mozambique, although two occurred in the south: one in the Maputo urban district of KaTembe and one in Chicumbane.
“Both these cases were identified a month after the heavy rainfall that caused floods in Maputo and Gaza,” Fernandes said. “Both patients progressed satisfactorily and have therefore been discharged. This is a positive development for us as health authorities.”
[See more: Tropical Cyclone Gezani threatens Mozambique]
Fernandes said that multi-disciplinary teams have been deployed to Nampula and Tete to stop the spread of cholera and prepare for mass vaccination. Mozambique has 3.5 million doses of cholera vaccine available for mass vaccination in the four hardest hit districts, Tete city and Moatize (Tete) and Erati and Nacala-Port (Nampula).
Fernandes also announced that Mozambique recorded 1.3 million malaria cases in the first six weeks of 2026, compared to 876,000 in the same period last year. Despite this uptick in cases, he said the country has seen a 38-percent reduction in malaria-related deaths.
“To contain the spread of the disease, especially during this period marked by floods, the Health Ministry has established 59 health posts in accommodation centres, where 1,200 people have already been treated for malaria”, he said. Authorities distributed more than 26,000 mosquito nets to the provinces of Gaza and Maputo, as well as Maputo City, and carried out indoor spraying in accommodation centres.
The ministry also decided to move up the universal distribution of mosquito nets, originally scheduled for August. Health authorities are “making a great effort” to complete distribution to the provinces of Gaza and Inhambane between April and June. Alongside the distribution, health authorities intend to spray in several districts in Maputo and Gaza provinces.
