By Chuks Oyema-Aziken
The Federal Ministry of Environment on Sunday said arrangements are being made to support states most affected by the recent cholera outbreak with chlorine solution/tablets, water and food testing resources, IEC materials and technical advisory.
Minister of State, Federal Ministry of Environment, Dr. Iziaq Adekunle Salako disclosed in a press release signed by himself.
He confirmed a total number of 1159 suspected cases, 65 confirmed cases and 30 deaths across 30 States.
Salako said the states most affected, contributing 90% of the total cases includes, Bayelsa, Lagos, Zamfara, Abia, Bauchi, Cross River, Ebonyi, Delta and Katsina.
According to him “the Federal Ministry of Environment has been actively involved through the Department of Pollution Control and Environmental Health and the Environmental Health Officers Registration Council of Nigeria in activities to break further transmission of the deadly disease through water and food testing to identify sources of infection, environmental sanitation campaigns and household water chlorination.
“Arrangements are also being made to support states most affected by the outbreak with chlorine solution/tablets, water and food testing resources, IEC materials and technical advisory.
He noted that Cholera outbreak is a seasonal public health event in Nigeria, occurring annually mostly during the rainy season and often in areas with poor sanitation and hygiene practices.
“Extreme climate events like flooding are also contributing in multiple ways to drive the outbreak of the disease.
“The World Health Organization (WHO), has confirmed the global resurgence of cases of cholera classifying the current outbreak a “grade 3 public health emergency”, requiring maximal WHO system wide response. Nigeria is one of the 14 countries in Africa where the resurgence is being experienced.
“To prevent the spread of cholera, we urge all Nigerians to be more vigilant, imbibe good sanitation and hygiene practices at home and in their workplace and take preventive measures such as.”
