The outbreaks of the disease that hit both countries already leave 600 dead, the vast majority in Sudanese territory MADRID Oct. 6. (EUROPA PRESS) –
The NGO Save the Children has warned that the mortality rate from cholera in Nigeria and Sudan is three times higher than the world average due to the outbreaks declared in both countries and which have left almost 600 dead to date, the majority in Sudanese territory.
This country, according to estimates by the Sudanese Ministry of Health in collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO) collected by the NGO, has registered between July 22 and September 29 more than 17,600 cases of cholera and 546 deaths associated with the disease in an outbreak that is occurring in the midst of an absolutely devastating armed conflict between the Army and paramilitaries that has left 80 percent of the country’s hospitals inoperative.
As for Nigeria, its government has confirmed at least 32 deaths and 450 confirmed cases as of October 1. The recent floods that have devastated the country and its neighbors have led to the rapid spread of the disease.
Thus, the mortality rate in these countries is, respectively, 3.1 and 2.9 deaths per 100 confirmed cases, above 1 percent of the world average according to figures collected by the NGO.
Save the Children’s acting director for Sudan, Mohamed Abdiladif, has warned that “the absence of life-saving medicines, combined with hunger and malnutrition, is putting millions of children at risk of contracting diseases and possibly dying.” “.
The director of the NGO for Nigeria, Duncan Harvey, recalls that, while “cholera outbreaks can be prevented with adequate infrastructure and hygiene practices, floods in Nigeria are worsening the lives of the most vulnerable, especially the children of the northeast of the country.
“We call on governments and donor agencies to accelerate action to save children’s lives, and urge the public to take precautions and seek medical attention immediately if symptoms appear,” it added.
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