UN seeks N40.3 billion for cholera outbreak response in North East

The United Nations Deputy Humanitarian Coordinator, Peter Lundberg, is urgently seeking $9.9 million (N40.3 billion) to respond with its partners to the current cholera outbreaks in Borno State.

Cholera has claimed 48 lives since its outbreak on August 16, 2017 at Muna Garage resettlement camp of the state.

Lundberg in a statement issued yesterday, in Maiduguri, announced that failure to respond, will make it 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) has been developed to address the immediate needs of 3.7 million people that could be affected by the water borne disease.

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 no 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 Lundberg,

Meanwhile, at least 15 people were killed yesterday when two female suicide bombers attacked an aid distribution point in Mashalari village of the Konduga area, about 40 kilometres from Maiduguri, Borno State.

A rescue worker told AFP news agency: “It killed 15 people and left 43 others injured.”