HAO Reports Sudan: Cholera outbreak Flash Update No. 5, As of 24 December 2023

HIGHLIGHTS

• At least 8,267 suspected cholera cases, including 224 associated deaths, have been reported.Sudan declared a cholera outbreak in Gedaref on 26 September.

• Cholera has spread to 46 localities in nine states as of 23 December 2023.

• Humanitarian agencies are scaling up the response to the outbreak, supporting the detection and treatment of cases. They also address water, sanitation and hygiene issues, water quality monitoring and chlorination, risk communication, and community engagement.

• Surveillance is ongoing to identify and address risk factors in affected and high-risk areas.

• Over 2.2 million people (98 per cent of the target) were vaccinated against cholera in high-risk localities in Gedaref and Aj Jazirah.

• A planned oral cholera vaccination campaign targets 5.5 million people living in 14 localities reporting cholera cases in Aj Jazirah, Red Sea,Kassala, White Nile, Sennar, and Blue Nile states.

SITUATION OVERVIEW

At least 8,267 suspected cases of cholera, including 224 associated deaths (case fatality rate of 2.7 per cent), were reported as of 23 December from 46 localities of nine states, according to the Federal Ministry of Health (FMoH) and the World Health Organization (WHO) Sudan Outbreaks Dashboard. This is an increase of about 104 per cent compared to the number of cases reported on 23 November 2023. So far, there are 2,240 suspected cases and 77 associated deaths in Red Sea; 2,005 suspected cases of cholera and 49 associated deaths in Gedaref; 1,859 suspected cases and 26 associated deaths in Aj Jazirah; 1,090 suspected cases and 31 associated deaths in White Nile; 525 suspected cases and 26 associated deaths in Khartoum; 346 suspected cases and eight associated deaths in South Kordofan; 113 suspected cases and four associated deaths in Sennar; 86 suspected cases and three associated deaths in Kassala; and three suspected case in Blue Nile.

The Federal Ministry of Health (FMoH) declared the current cholera outbreak on 26 September 2023 after the vibrio was isolated and confirmed while the initial suspected cases were reported from South Kordofan State on 19 July 2023. Based on the Global Task Force on Cholera Control (GTFCC) tool, it is estimated that about 46 per cent (19.5 million) of the population in 51 localities of 15 states in Sudan will be at medium to high risk of cholera before the end of 2023. A total of 3.1 million (7.3 per cent of the total population) in 12 localities of six states will be at higher risk of cholera this year. Based on the average attack rate of 0.025 per cent for the past five years, 77,500 cholera cases could be expected this year from the high-risk localities, of which, only 15,500 cases (20 per cent) may develop severe dehydration requiring admission at cholera treatment centers. Overall, Sudan experienced more than 17 outbreaks of cholera and/or Acute Watery Diarrhea (AWD) over the past 50 years. Seasonal upsurges of AWD/cholera cases were experienced either during the dry season with water shortages or during the rainy season following flooding and contamination of water sources.

UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs

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