The World Health Organisation’s (WHO) director-general issued an urgent plea to increase cholera vaccine production, which is currently falling short due to increased demand from dozens of countries.
“The response continues to be affected by a critical shortage of the vaccine,” Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on X.
He explained that the demand for cholera vaccines far outstrips the current supply, with requests for over 105 million doses from 18 countries since January 2023, while only 55 million doses have been produced.
Since the beginning of the year, over 300,000 people have gotten sick with #cholera and over 2300 died from it.
— Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (@DrTedros) August 15, 2024
The response continues to be affected by a critical shortage of the vaccine, as demand continues to outpace supply, with 105 million doses requested by 18 countries… pic.twitter.com/RknHN8ih8D
To address this, the WHO is urging further investments to boost vaccine production. Dr Tedros also emphasised the need for all states to prioritise investments in water and sanitation infrastructure and emergency preparedness to prevent future cholera outbreaks.
Given the ongoing epidemics and their global reach, coupled with vaccine shortages and limited resources, the WHO maintains that the risk of cholera remains “very high” worldwide, as outlined in their latest monthly bulletin.
According to WHO data, between 1 January and 28 July, there were 307,433 reported cases of cholera and 2,326 deaths across 26 countries.
The Eastern Mediterranean region has been the worst affected, followed by Africa, South-East Asia, the Americas, and Europe. Thankfully, no epidemics were reported in the Western Pacific region during this time frame.
Cholera is a waterborne disease transmitted through contaminated food or water and infected faeces containing the Vibrio cholerae bacterium, causing severe diarrhoea and dehydration, which can prove fatal within hours without treatment.
(information from amna.gr)
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