Cholera Cases Surge Globally, WHO Scrambles for Vaccines

The World Health Organization (WHO) is sounding the alarm on a global spike in cholera, with nearly 195,000 cases and over 1,900 deaths reported in 24 countries so far this year, UN news website reported yesterday.

The Eastern Mediterranean region has been hit hardest, followed by Africa, the Americas, Southeast Asia, and Europe, the report highlighted.

Despite exceeding its emergency vaccine production target in June, WHO warns demand for the Oral Cholera Vaccine (OCV) far outstrips supply. Since January 2023, requests for OCV have nearly doubled production capacity.

WHO is collaborating with UNICEF and other partners to secure long-term solutions for controlling cholera.

On a positive note, WHO announced the eradication of “sleeping sickness” in Chad, applauding the country for eliminating the disease, which is a form of human African trypanosomiasis. This success brings Chad closer to the global target of eliminating neglected tropical diseases by 2030, with around 50 countries having already achieved this goal.

Early diagnosis, treatment, and surveillance have shown that controlling and eliminating transmission of the disease is possible.