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Angola

Angola - Cholera Response - DREF Operational update (MDRAO011)

Attachments

Date of event

07-01-2025

What happened, where and when?

Bairro Paraíso, Municipality of Cacuaco, Luanda Province, registered on January 7, 2025, 25 suspected cases of cholera, of which 5 died. Until January 8th, more than 30 suspected cases were recorded. On January 8th, the Ministry of Health held a meeting to launch the 2025 National Response Plan to Control Cholera, requesting partners, including Angola Red Cross, to support with the planned response. By January 11th, 170 suspected cases were recorded with 30 conrmed cases across 3 provinces (Luanda, Bengo, Icolo & Bengo). By January 17th, 422 cases have been reported with 24 deaths leading to a high case fatality rate (5.7%) Combined with heavy rainfall, poor sanitation and limited access to clean water, which increases the risk of outbreaks of cholera and other waterborne diseases, especially in children. The rainy season in Angola is underway, INAMET - National Institute of Meteorology and Geophysics, predicts above-average rainfall for the current rainy season. In the past two months, multiple risk alerts for imminent ooding have been issued on the Disaster Alert platform across various provinces, including Luanda and those at higher risk of diseases outbreak.

Scope and Scale

The Municipality of Cacuaco is currently considered the epicenter of cholera transmission in Luanda. Due to the high mobility of the population and the movement of goods, all of Luanda's municipalities are classied as High-Risk areas for the spread of cholera. Furthermore, this situation represents a signicant risk for all the country's provinces, especially those bordering Luanda Province. Cholera and other Acute Diarrheal Diseases are signicant public health challenges, with a high potential for causing epidemics and mortality, especially when they are not treated in a timely manner.

Cholera is a disease caused by an intestinal infection, which is spread mainly through the ingestion of contaminated water and food. Other forms of transmission include person-to-person contact and contact with contaminated objects and surfaces. Community transmission of cholera occurs rapidly, often culminating in epidemic outbreaks. These outbreaks require the immediate implementation of robust, eective and coordinated multi-sectoral control strategies to prevent the spread of the disease in communities. The incidence of the disease is intrinsically linked to inadequate sanitation conditions in communities. Densely populated cities in Luanda pose a high risk for rapid spread, due to crowded areas and lack of adequate sanitation infrastructure. Rural communities that also lack access to washing materials and safe water are also at high risk. Previous outbreaks of cholera and other epidemics (Polio, Mpox) in Angola suggest similar hot-spot patterns, with high-risk areas including the northern provinces sharing a border with DRC as well as Luanda and main cities. Cholera outbreaks can be deadly. The last major cholera outbreak occurred between 2016 and 2017 with a total of 252 cases and 11 deaths, aecting the provinces of Cabinda (73 cases and 3 deaths), Zaire (174 cases and 8 deaths) and Luanda (5 cases and zero deaths). Additionally, in 2018 there was a limited outbreak in Uíge Province.