Informing humanitarians worldwide 24/7 — a service provided by UN OCHA

Benin

Benin: Cholera outbreak (MDRBJ013), DREF Operation update No. 1

Attachments

Period covered by this update: 10 October to 17 November, 2013

CHF 201,952 was initially allocated from the IFRC’s Disaster Relief Emergency Fund (DREF) to support the Croix-Rouge Beninoise in delivering immediate assistance to approximately 20,000 people (4,000 households).

This update extends support to the existing operation through a second DREF allocation of CHF 39,203 to support an additional 25,000 beneficiaries (approximately 5,000 households) in Cotonou municipality.

Unearmarked funds to repay DREF are encouraged.

Summary

In response to a shift in the geographical spread of the cholera epidemic in Benin, this operation update announces an increased support to the operation currently in Benin. The cholera outbreak, which started in August this year has so far resulted in 406 registered cases of cholera and 6 deaths, representing a case fatality rate of 1.4. The initial response of the Benin Red Cross Society (BRCS) and the IFRC targeted 20,000 beneficiaries in Sô-Ava municipality where the highest concentration of cases was reported and triggered the launch of the operation. Following the DREF allocation, BRCS started water and sanitation (WatSan), hygiene promotion and cholera sensitization activities supported by an IFRC deployed regional disaster response team (RDRT) trained in health and WatSan. Within the last few weeks there has been a shift in geographical spread of cases, and based on epidemiological analysis, BRCS and IFRC has expanded the response operation to Cotonou municipality, which is currently registering the highest number of cholera cases. The response interventions in Cotonou are focused on community sensitization and promoting hygiene practices and are complementing the government’s efforts.

Cholera outbreaks have been registered in neighbouring countries of Togo and Nigeria, and regional monitoring is on-going to ensure the control and prepare for response if need be. The epidemiological analysis is supported by the IFRC global team and analysis will guide further review of the operational plan if necessary.

The operation is planned to be carried out during a three months’ timeframe and will end by 31st January 2014. A final report will be made available by April 30, 2014.