Ogun, Cross River, Zamfara, Adamawa highest in cholera cases, says NCDC

 

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) has named Zamfara, Cross River, Adamawa, and Ogun as states with the highest cholera cases in the country.

NCDC’s Incident Manager for Cholera Technical Working Group, Dr. Sebastian Yennan, announced this at the monthly meeting of the Water Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) in Emergency Working Group yesterday in Abuja.

Yennan said the cases were updates from the centre’s Epidemiology Week 39.

The incident manager assured Nigerians that efforts were ongoing in providing response materials to affected states across the country.

He said NCDC’s intervention through cholera case management was carried out in partnership with the World Health Organisation (WHO) by distributing infection prevention and control kits, WASH kits, chlorine powder, among others, to affected communities.

Yennan said the intervention was being prioritised in the four states, adding that the kits distributed could also be used in other emergency situations, like Lassa fever and diphtheria outbreaks.

“The NCDC has partnered a third party logistics company in the distribution of commodities and also to bring samples. Our cholera response is at the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

“In Zamfara, for instance, the governor visited the cholera treatment centre in Anka Local Government Area that was built by Doctors Without Borders/MSF. They have received response commodities,” he said.

Yennen said states must do more to prioritise cholera prevention by ensuring that funds are budgeted early and are accessible.

The incident manager stated that the centre is in charge of administration of the Basic Health Care Provision Fund.

The fund, he said, was packaged to strengthen the national health system.

Yennan advised states to preposition their needs to access it before, during, and after any disease outbreak.

He also urged stakeholders to strengthen partnerships to promote advocacy towards prevention of health emergency in the country.

Also, a representative of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Mr. Dapo Akingbade, said following the release of excess water from Lagdo dam in Cameroon, 13 states experienced flooding.

According to him, 171,545 persons were displaced in the affected states, while property and farmlands were destroyed, with no fewer than 45 deaths.

Akingbade, who gave an update on cholera outbreaks across the country, said the agency had begun assessment of flood situation in Adamawa with the activation of the emergency operation centre for coordinating interventions.

“The flooding in Adamawa has impacted on a lot of people and communities, at the EOC meeting, we recommended that all states should activate their flood response plan.

“Also, we are also awaiting a detailed Needs Assessment report from Adamawa so as to know the appropriate areas APC response,” he said.

The National Consultant for Public Health and Environment at WHO Nigeria, Dr. Edwin Isotu-Edeh, said there was need for all partners to increase their investments for the WASH sector.

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