29/01/2024
PRESS STATEMENT ON THE CHOLERA SITUATION IN ZAMBIA
Lusaka – 29th January, 2024
Zambia continues to respond to a cholera outbreak that began in October 2023 with a focus on limiting mortality and reducing the spread of the disease. We continue to use a comprehensive and multisectoral approach.
In the last few days, we have intensified community engagement to understand further, the challenges in the hot spots of Lusaka District and appreciate the progress made in mitigating the outbreak. While it was disheartening to note poor waste management and poor hygiene practices in some of these communities, I was pleased to note the willingness to improve.
The impact of this outbreak goes beyond impacting the health of our population as it has disrupted our daily livelihood. Education, socialisation and indeed the economic fabric in our individual capacities and that of our nation have all been affected. Together, we must navigate these challenges, with a unified front against this preventable yet life-threatening disease.
I appeal to all to come together and safeguard our communities from preventable diseases by ensuring their households and general communities are environmentally clean and safe. We must all work towards containing the epidemic applying solid efforts to quickly and effectively control this life-threatening yet preventable disease.
Allow me to update you on the current status of the outbreak. We recorded a total of 295 cases in the last 24 Hours. These cases were recorded as 216 in Lusaka, 12 in Copperbelt, 38 in central, 24 in Southern, 4 in Eastern and 1 in North Western.
Lusaka District remains at the forefront of this outbreak as the epicenter, reporting 171 cases in the past 24 hours out of the 216 cases. 49 were from Kanyama constituency, 39 from Matero consituency, 31 from Munali constituency, 22 from Chawama constituency, 18 from Mandevu constituency and 4 from Lusaka Central constituency. The other districts in the Province reported 35