No cholera case registered last year

The Ministry of Health has said it did not register any cholera case last year and anticipates no cases to be registered by the end of this rainy season.

The ministry’s spokesperson Henry Chimbali said the development is a result of the interventions by both government and non-governmental organisations (NGOs).

“Cholera spreads a lot during the rainy season. But for the past two years, we have not registered any case of the infection. This is very different from 2011 when over 1 000 cases were registered,” he said on Thursday.

Chimbali said although the progress shown implies that the disease is more easily prevented now than before, government still has sufficient cholera drugs in store.

“We have adequate drugs, including chlorine, to treat and control cholera. All the supplies have already been distributed to public hospitals and health centres. Other medication is being stored at the Central Medical Stores Trust,” said Chimbali.

He added: “We are making very good progress and hope that the season will end without registering any cholera case. This is because we have intensified our anti-cholera campaigns and we continue to sensitise the public to prevention methods.”