A cholera outbreak in northern Nigeria has killed at least 20 people in the past two weeks. More than 300 people have been hospitalized. A local health official said this on Tuesday.
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Nigeria, Africa’s largest oil producer, regularly suffers from water-borne diseases due to poor infrastructure and lack of investment.
The most recent outbreak in the country has occurred in nine districts in Bauchi state, with the capital Bauchi being the hardest hit. Mohammed Maigoro, the head of the state health service, told reporters.
“We have recorded 20 deaths and 322 cases of cholera in nine areas so far in the past two weeks,” he said. “The capital Bauchi has been hit the hardest, with half the deaths and 147 deaths.”
Cases are on the rise, and the government has asked all 20 districts in the state to deploy their emergency teams and open special quarantine centers.
Healthcare personnel and medicines have been sent to the affected areas, while awareness campaigns on water and personal hygiene have been ramped up, he said.
Eight states in Nigeria have reported likely cases of cholera this year, according to the Nigerian Center for Disease Control (NCDC).
As of January, a total of 1,746 likely cases of cholera and 50 deaths have been reported in those states. More than half of the confirmed cases were children between the ages of 5 and 14.
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