Africa initiates cholera response plan amid Sudan outbreak

Sudan’s severe cholera outbreak has prompted Africa to launch a new continental emergency preparedness and response plan, according to Africa News Plus agencies on August 27^th.

The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention and the World Health Organisation (WHO) jointly unveiled the plan in Lusaka, Zambia. It seeks to bolster early cholera detection systems, rapid response capacity, and cross-border cooperation.

The continent is facing recurring outbreaks, which are often catalysed by climate shocks and fragile health systems.

In the case of Sudan, which medical charity Doctors Without Borders (MSF) warns is struggling to contain “the worst cholera outbreak the country has seen in years”, civil war has devastated the health care system and obstructed adequate humanitarian resources from reaching the most afflicted areas.

Sudan’s outbreak illustrates the urgency of the initiative. According to health officials, in the space of just a week, over 1,200 new cholera cases and 36 deaths were documented.

The Sudanese health ministry said the new cases brought the total number of cholera cases up to 102,831, including 2,561 fatalities since the nationwide outbreak started in August 2024, according to TRT World via Anadolu Agency on August 27^th.

A 10-day vaccination initiative was launched for residents of Sudan’s capital city, Khartoum, on August 10^th. However, the plan falls short of confronting the true scale of the crisis. The WHO confirmed on August 6^th that cholera cases have been recorded in all 18 Sudanese states. South Darfur – which is approximately a thousand kilometres southwest of Khartoum – is amongst the worst afflicted states.

Health experts have warned that in the absence of coordinated action, cholera – which is easily preventable and treatable – will rapidly spread across the continent. The disease has already spilled over from Sudan into Chad’s eastern province of Ouaddai, where it has killed at least 63 people.