WHO Regional Office for Africa / Press Release

Source: WHO Regional Office for Africa | Mar 23, 2023

Cyclone Freddy deepens health risks in worst-hit countries

In Malawi and Mozambique the cyclone tore through amid cholera outbreaks

The devastation by Tropical Cyclone Freddy is exposing major health risks in the hardest-hit southern Africa countries where emergency response efforts are being ramped up to provide relief to affected communities. More than 300 health facilities have been destroyed or flooded in Madagascar, Malawi and Mozambique following the devastation by…

Source: WHO Regional Office for Africa | Mar 23, 2023

Equatorial Guinea confirms eight more Marburg cases

WHO is working with the national authorities to step up emergency response measures

Equatorial Guinea’s Ministry of Health has confirmed eight more cases of Marburg, bringing the number of confirmed cases to nine since the outbreak of the viral haemorrhagic fever was declared on 13 February. The new cases were confirmed following laboratory analysis of additional samples. So far, there are 20 probable…

Source: WHO Regional Office for Africa | Mar 22, 2023

Tanzania confirms first-ever outbreak of Marburg Virus Disease

Marburg virus disease is highly virulent and causes haemorrhagic fever, with a fatality ratio of up to 88%

Tanzania today confirmed its first-ever cases of Marburg Virus Disease after laboratory tests were carried out following reports of cases and deaths in the country’s north-west Kagera region. Tanzania’s National Public Health Laboratory analysed samples to determine the cause of illness after eight people developed symptoms including fever, vomiting, bleeding…

Source: WHO Regional Office for Africa | Mar 20, 2023

Africa burdened with largest global increase of oral diseases

Oral health remains a low priority in many African countries, leading to inadequate financial and technical investment

Around 44% of the population in the African region suffer from oral diseases, and while the region has experienced the steepest rise globally in oral diseases over the last three decades, spending on treatment costs remains extremely low, a new report by World Health Organization (WHO) finds. Oral health remains…

Source: WHO Regional Office for Africa | Mar 02, 2023

Floods raise cholera risk even as cases decline in Africa

Some cholera treatment units have been flooded and there has been an increase in cases reported in some locations following the heavy rainfall

As weekly cholera cases in the affected African countries decline, heavy flooding due to seasonal rains and tropical cyclones in southern Africa are raising the risk of the disease spreading and threatening to undermine outbreak control efforts. New cholera cases fell to 2880 in the week ending on 26 February,…

Source: WHO Regional Office for Africa | Feb 27, 2023

Mozambique targets 720 000 people in cholera vaccination drive

People aged one year and older will be vaccinated in the five-day campaign, which started just 10 days after the country took delivery of vaccine doses

Mozambique today kicked off a cholera vaccination campaign targeting around 720 000 people in eight districts as the country steps up control measures against an outbreak in which 5260 cases and 37 deaths have been recorded to date since September 2022. People aged one year and older will be vaccinated…

Source: WHO Regional Office for Africa | Feb 19, 2023

African leaders call for urgent action to revitalize routine immunization

Across the continent, immunization coverage for many vaccine-preventable diseases is well below the 90‒95% range needed to keep Africa free of these diseases

African heads of state today agreed on key measures to revamp routine immunization across the continent following massive disruptions by the COVID-19 pandemic that stymied childhood vaccination programmes and heightened outbreaks of vaccine-preventable diseases. A total of 8.4 million children in the African region, compared with 18 million globally, were…

Source: WHO Regional Office for Africa | Feb 13, 2023

Equatorial Guinea confirms first-ever Marburg virus disease outbreak

So far nine deaths and 16 suspected cases with symptoms including fever, fatigue and blood-stained vomit and diarrhoea have been reported

Equatorial Guinea today confirmed its first-ever outbreak of Marburg virus disease. Preliminary tests carried out following the deaths of at least nine people in the country’s western Kie Ntem Province turned out positive for the viral haemorrhagic fever. Equatorial Guinean health authorities sent samples to the Institut Pasteur reference laboratory…

Source: WHO Regional Office for Africa | Feb 09, 2023

New cholera cases in Africa surging fast, reach a third of 2022 total in a month

An estimated 26 000 cases and 660 deaths have been reported as of 29 January 2023 in 10 African countries facing outbreaks since the beginning of the year

Africa is witnessing an exponential rise in cholera cases amid a global surge. Cases recorded on the continent in the first month of 2023 alone have already risen by more than 30% of the total caseload reached in the whole of 2022. An estimated 26 000 cases and 660 deaths…

Source: WHO Regional Office for Africa | Feb 03, 2023

World Health Organization deploys Emergency Medical Team to support cholera outbreak response in Malawi

EMTs are groups of health professionals that provide direct clinical care to people affected by emergencies and disasters and support local health systems

As part of the continued support to the Malawi Government in the cholera outbreak response, the World Health Organization (WHO) has activated its Emergency Medical Teams (EMTs) network following the recent request for assistance from the government. Two EMTs have been deployed to Malawi under partnership of WHO, UK-EMT (supported…

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