Unwashed fruits, food from street vendors could fuel cholera outbreak – UNICEF warns.

To alleviate cholera outbreaks, there is the need for a comprehensive approach such as sustainable, Water, Sanitation and Hygiene, WASH, infrastructure and strengthened health systems capable of anticipating epidemics as well as, effective community engagement strategies to halt transmission.

This includes implementing rapid surveillance, promoting social mobilization, administering treatment, and utilizing oral cholera vaccines (OCV). In all, preventing cholera centers on good sanitation and hygiene practices. ” Key actions include proper disposal of feces, eliminating open defecation, and ensuring access to potable water.

Reacting to the recent outbreak of cholera in Lagos and some parts of Nigeria, the United Nation’s Children’s Fund, UNICEF Lagos Chief of Field Office, Celin Lafoucrier, noted that, regular hand washing with clean, running water and soap is vital, stressing that, ” avoiding consumption of uncooked vegetables, unwashed fruits, raw or undercooked seafood, and food from street vendors is important to reduce the risk of cholera infection.”

Explaining further she noted that, ” Good water and sanitation infrastructure play a crucial role in reducing disease outbreaks, such as cholera, which causes an estimated 100,000 deaths annually. Water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) interventions are fundamental in preventing and responding to cholera epidemics.” Safe water supplies, hygienic sanitation, and effective water management are key elements in this effort “.

” Increasing access to safe drinking water, improving sanitation and hygiene, and better water management can prevent almost one-tenth of the global disease burden. Community access to sanitation, like simple latrines, prevents drinking water contamination from human waste, reducing infections, ” Regular hand washing with soap and safe drinking water storage are also high-impact practices “.  Lafoucrier

She said and I quote, ” Investing in drinking water, sanitation, hygiene, and water resource management systems is economically beneficial, each dollar invested yields up to eight dollars in benefits. Safer water could annually prevent 1.4 million child deaths from diarrhea, 500,000 deaths from malaria, and 860,000 child deaths from malnutrition, and protect 10 million people from serious illnesses like lymphatic filariasis and trachoma “.

Lafoucrier listing the challenges associated with cholera, disease outbreaks hinder Nigeria’s progress in achieving health-related Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG 3, which focuses on ensuring healthy lives and well-being for all, the outbreaks strain Nigeria’s health system, diverting limited resources from essential services like routine immunizations and maternal and childcare, undermining universal health coverage “.

Pointing out that, outbreaks disrupt health programs, leading to resurgences of vaccine-preventable diseases such as measles and diphtheria, which hinder efforts to reduce child mortality and control epidemics, she disclosed that, economically, outbreaks shift funds from primary healthcare to emergency response, causing economic downturns that reduce health budgets and government revenues, further straining health services “.

However, ” outbreaks also present opportunities to strengthen Nigeria’s health system. A robust response is needed to improve health infrastructure, enhance economic resilience, and ensure equitable access to health services. This is essential for mitigating the impact of outbreaks and progressing towards sustainable health outcomes “. She said.

Lafoucrier advised that, ” Cholera outbreaks originate and spread within communities, making community-led and participatory approaches essential for sustainable prevention. Communities and local governments can play crucial roles by leveraging communication channels to educate and protect public health, nothing that, ” prevention is more cost-effective than cure,  thus, ” urging communities to establish systems that promote key hygiene practices, transforming them into a cultural norm. “

She further explains that, Community-led surveillance can enforce sanitation practices, with empowered local monitors ensuring compliance, access to clean water and sanitation will prevent outbreaks.

” Communities must take collective action to ensure clean water access and maintain good hygiene. Identifying and empowering positive role models within the community can encourage the widespread adoption of healthy practices “. Lafoucrier stressed

It is no news that recurrent Cholera outbreaks critically affect children and populations at large, vulnerable groups face substantial health risks, particularly those under five who are prone to severe dehydration and higher mortality rates.

Highlighting the consequences further, she says, educational disruption is yet another critical consequence of cholera outbreaks, as illness and the need to care for sick family members lead to school closures and reduced attendance, hindering children’s learning and development. Similarly, post-recovery issues in children can include malnutrition, stunted growth, and weakened immune systems, increasing susceptibility to other diseases.

The outbreaks underscore the urgent need for improved access to clean water and sanitation in many areas. Despite the state government’s efforts to provide water to its population, the current outbreak demonstrates the need for an urgent government focus on ensuring the water provided to the population is clean and risk-free.

 ” Addressing the challenges of cholera outbreaks requires a deliberate focus of state policies to provide high-standard water and sanitation facilities, as well as strengthened healthcare systems capable of responding to the demand in times of outbreaks, ” state led educational campaigns on cholera prevention to protect children and the population at large “. Lafoucrier advised

Julie Ekong