Zimbabwe: The first phase of the National Oral Cholera Vaccination Campaign has now begun. The campaign will see over 800,000 people in various cholera hotspots receiving a dose of the vaccine.
As per the sources, the campaign is expected to run till Feb 02, 2024, and is targeting individuals and children from and above the age of one year.
Reportedly, Zimbabwe rolled out the first oral cholera vaccination after the 2018 outbreak and this was beneficial instrumental in curbing the spread of the disease.
Health and Child Care Minister – Dr Douglas Mombeshora was represented by the Minister of State for Harare Provincial Affairs – Charles Tawengwa and called on communities to take the vaccine, which he confirmed was safe.
He said the campaign’s success hinged on every Zimbabwean’s participation. He also added that the supplies would be necessary to manage people suffering from Cholera.
Minister also presented gratitude on behalf of the nation, “Today, we thank the Health Resilient Fund, United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), United Parcel Services Foundation and all the partners that contributed to this donation of cholera medicines and commodities.”
The Government of Zimbabwe received Cholera vaccines and commodities from UNICEF, last week. The final batch of the Oral Cholera Vaccines (OCV) was received by the government on Jan 27, 2024.
Notably, the medicines are reported to be worth over US $265,000, which were received from the various development partners. The total OCVs received by the country are 892,000.
The OCV campaign was started in response to the current outbreak that has affected 20,000 people and claimed 454 lives since its onset in Feb 2023.
As per the recent reports, Zimbabwe recorded a cumulative 20,446 cholera cases and 452 cholera-related deaths on Jan 24, 2024 resulting in a case fatality rate of 2.2 percent.
The medicinal supplies received by the government include antibiotics, oral rehydration salts, infusion-giving sets and other commodities that are used in the treatment of diarrhoeal disease.
Until now, 60 out of 63 districts in Zimbabwe have reported cholera cases. Poor water supplies, sanitation, and bad hygiene contributed to the outbreak.