By Our Reporter

Three thousand five hundred and ninety eight persons were said to have died as a result of cholera related complications in Nigeria in 2021.

The Director in charge of the of water quality control at the Nigerian Federal Ministry of Water Resources, Emmanuel Awe, disclosed this at a stakeholder’s meeting in Abuja, Tuesday.

He, therefore, called for the strengthening of coordination from all partners to prevent cholera related deaths in the country.

Awe revealed that the country reported 107,911 cholera cases as of December 2021, with 3,598 deaths, which is a huge increase from 1,858 cases and 95 deaths reported in 2020.

   “These figures are not acceptable…Waterborne diseases are actually preventable, and all we need to do is to ensure that our people have access to clean and safe potable water at all times,” he noted.

   Awe further noted that the cholera cases were reported from 341 local government areas in 29 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja, including the conflicted states in the northeast and crisis-affected northwest region.

   He stressed that “these reports of the resurgence of cholera are a worrisome public health crisis,”  explaining that the data received from the Cholera Situation Report for 2021 revealed that the age group of five to 14 years was the most affected.

   On her part, an official of United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), Jane Bevan, said it was shocking that cholera cases were higher than COVID-19 in 2021, and therefore, called  for renewed coordination from all key stakeholders in order to tackle the situation.