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by IANS |
Lilongwe, Jan 18 (IANS) Malawi has launched a five-year cholera control plan, aiming to reduce the disease's annual incidence rate by 90 per cent and achieve a case fatality rate of less than 1 per cent by 2030.
Dubbed the Malawi Multi-sectoral Cholera Control Plan (MMCCP), the initiative, launched on Thursday, will enhance the coordination and implementation of multi-sectoral interventions for cholera prevention and control in the country.
Malawian Health Minister Khumbize Kandodo Chiponda said the MMCCP is very necessary as records show that "the country has faced repeated outbreaks since the first cholera cases were reported in 1973".
From March 2022 to January 2025, Malawi recorded 61,639 cases of cholera and 1,786 cholera-related deaths. The recurrent outbreaks in this southern African country have been attributed to limited access to safe water, inadequate sanitation, and generally poor hygiene practices at the household level.
According to the minister, a series of natural disasters, including tropical storms and cyclones Ana, Gombe, Hidaya, Freddy, and Chido, also "exacerbated already existing risk factors and caused untold havoc to the already overstretched health systems in the country."
Joseph Seriki, focal person and regional coordinator for the Global Task Force on Cholera Control, described the MMCCP as a landmark document that represents a unified commitment to eradicating cholera in Malawi, Xinhua news agency reported.
He described the recent cholera outbreaks in Malawi as a reminder for urgent and sustained action to address the root causes of the disease and strengthen preparedness and response mechanisms.
Meanwhile, Malawi has launched an oral cholera vaccination campaign in five districts, where the disease is prevalent, with a death toll of 14 and 263 recorded cases since September 2024.
According to the World Health Organization, Cholera is an acute diarrhoeal infection caused by eating or drinking food or water that is contaminated with the bacterium Vibrio cholerae. Cholera remains a global threat to public health and is an indicator of inequity and lack of social development. Researchers have estimated that every year, there are 1.3 to 4.0 million cases of cholera, and 21,000 to 143,000 deaths worldwide due to the infection.
Cholera is an extremely serious disease that can cause severe acute watery diarrhoea with severe dehydration. It takes between 12 hours and 5 days for a person to show symptoms after consuming contaminated food or water. Cholera affects both children and adults and can kill within hours if untreated.
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