Cholera cases in Angola have increased significantly since the outbreak began earlier this month, killing at least 20 people as health officials work to contain the disease, reports the Portuguese news agency Lusa.
According to the most recent epidemiological bulletin from the country’s health ministry and other data, there are more than 380 presumed cases and 75 confirmed. The municipality of Cacuaco – a suburban area of around 1.2 million people in Luanda Province – is the outbreak’s ground-zero, recording 17 of the fatalities suffered so far.
Cholera is a bacterial disease spread through contaminated water and food – meaning that unsafe drinking water, poor sanitation and inadequate hygiene are the biggest risk factors for outbreaks. The disease causes severe diarrhoea and dehydration, and while it can be deadly, timely rehydration therapy is successful in saving more than 99 percent of patients, underscoring the importance of seeking medical help as soon as possible.
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Healthcare teams have been visiting Cacuaco to assess sanitation and access to drinking water. Rehydration posts and cholera treatment centres have also been established in the most affected neighbourhoods.
Reducing the high fatality rate was the main concern raised by World Health Organization (WHO) officials during a high-level meeting last weekend. Government officials from several ministries met with the WHO, UNICEF, World Bank and the CEO of EPAL, Angola’s national water company, to review a detailed response plan presented by the health ministry.
The WHO emphasised the importance of working with traditional leaders to encourage use of oral rehydration solutions, as well as strengthening case management and hospital interventions. It also highlighted the need for improved water and sanitation infrastructure.
