At least 54 people have died from cholera in Somalia in recent months. Humanitarian group Save the Children said nine of the deaths occurred in the past week, the highest death toll in a single week this year.
Mohamed Abdulkader, acting director of operations for Save the Children in Somalia, told VOA Somali that the statistic highlights how vulnerable children are to the deadly disease.
“Save the Children, in partnership with the Somali Ministry of Health and Human Services, shows that of the 4,388 cases confirmed in 2024, 59% were children under the age of five,” Abdulkader said.
In the country’s southern states, the country’s capital, Mogadishu, has reported a significant increase in cholera cases over the past two weeks.
Abdelkader said 586 new cases were reported in 23 districts, 331 of which affected children under the age of five.
The outbreak began in January this year and is believed to be a direct result of severe flooding in October and November 2023.
“We believe that recent devastating flooding in areas such as Mogadishu, Beledweyne and Baidoa contributed to the outbreak,” Abdulkader said.
He said Save the Children urgently called on local governments and health agencies to take action to curb the rapid spread of cholera.
“We call on the federal and regional governments of Somalia to take action to combat this highly contagious disease, which is spread primarily through contaminated waters and flooded areas with inadequate sewage treatment,” he said.
He added that people who lack safe drinking water are particularly vulnerable to cholera outbreaks, especially after floods.
He said Save the Children was implementing emergency response strategies to prevent further spread of the disease. The aid agency is setting up two cholera treatment centers in Beledweyne, providing basic hygiene and water treatment supplies.
Abdulkader stressed the seriousness of the situation, noting that Somalia is at the forefront of the climate crisis.
He said persistent rains, floods and devastating droughts left children and families highly vulnerable to illness. He stressed the urgent need for clean drinking water and sanitation to prevent the cholera epidemic from getting out of control when the rainy season begins in a month’s time.
In 2023, Somalia recorded more than 18,300 cases of cholera, 10,000 of which affected children under five years of age. Both Save the Children and the Somali government attribute the devastating increase in numbers to devastating El Niño floods in November and December, which destroyed latrines and latrines. As a result, many communities, especially those recently displaced by flooding and conflict, have begun practicing open defecation.
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