The country has used all the vaccines it had, including the nearly 3 million doses sent by the UN in November.
MO12345lemonde with AFP
The current cholera epidemic since March 2022 in Malawi killed more than 1,000 people, the Ministry of Health announced on Tuesday, January 24, deploring vaccines. The number of deaths reached Tuesday (1,002) made this deadliest cholera epidemic ever recorded in this poor country in southern Africa, which had previously known 968 deaths in 2001-2002, according to the World Health Organization ( WHOs). A total of 30,600 people were infected since the appearance of the first cases last year.
In November, Malawi had received nearly 3 million doses of UN oral vaccine. But “we used all the vaccines we have,” the Ministry of Health spokesman Adrian Chikumbe told AFP on Tuesday. “The fact that there is only one manufacturer of cholera vaccines in the world makes it difficult to acquire the drug,” he added, because “we are in competition for the same vaccine with everyone “. Part of the Malawite population also refuses the treatments in the name of religious beliefs, which contributes to the spread of the disease.
In September, the WHO had reported a “disturbing resurgence” of cholera in the world, after years of decline, climate change adding to the usual factors such as poverty and conflicts. The disease affects each year between 1.3 million and 4 million people on the planet, upon 143,000 people. Cholera is contracted by the ingestion of water or food contaminated by a bacteria. It generally causes diarrhea and vomiting and can be very dangerous for young children.