By, Jutha Gupah, Maiduguri
The United Nations Deputy Humanitarian Coordinator, Peter Lundberg has urgently appealed for $9.9 million (N40.3 billion) to respond with its partners to the current cholera outbreaks in Borno State with in North-East sub-region of the country.
Cholera has claimed 48 lives since its outbreak on August 16, 2017 at Muna Garage resettlement camp.
Lundberg in a statement issued on Monday in Maiduguri to journalists; announced that failure to respond, it could be too late to prevent further outbreaks in high-risk areas of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) camps and host communities in the four council areas in the state.
He said a Cholera Response and Prevention Plan (CRPP) have been developed to address the immediate needs of 3.7 million people that could be affected by the water borne disease.
“Despite extensive efforts to improve sanitation conditions in camps and raise awareness on the importance of best hygiene practices, the first cholera cases were identified in Borno State on 16 August. To date, the outbreak has claimed at least 44 lives, out of close to 2,300 confirmed and/or suspected cases,” said Lundberg in the statement.
He said four specialized treatment centres and seven Oral Re-hydration Points (ORPs)) have been set up in all three affected areas. Teams of community mobilizers and chlorine sprayers, according to him; have been going from shelter to shelter and house to house, informing families of the risk of infection and how to get treatment should symptoms arise.
His words: “The clock is ticking. The camps for displaced persons are congested; there is not enough water, sanitation facilities are poor, and the health care system is weak. We must tackle this urgently to
avoid preventable suffering and loss of life,” said Peter Lundberg, the Deputy Humanitarian Coordinator for Nigeria.”
Cholera Response and Prevention Plan (CRPP), according to Lundberg, provides a strategy to address the outbreak from all angles over the next few months.
“The prevention plan, include, treating identified cases, monitoring and tracking of new potential cases, improving sanitation conditions, ensuring affected people have access to clean water, informing
communities and carrying out vaccination campaigns and other life-saving interventions,” he said.
He also noted: “We need a holistic and comprehensive response to this outbreak and a clear prevention strategy,” warning that: “the implications of not responding in a timely manner could be absolutely
devastating for millions of conflict-affected women, children and men who are already living in very dire conditions.”
The humanitarian crisis in Nigeria’s north-east is one of the most severe in the world today, with 8.5 million people in need of life-saving aid in Borno, Adamawa and Yobe states, out of whom 6.9
million are targeted for humanitarian assistance.
