This Weekly Bulletin focuses on selected acute public health emergencies occurring in the WHO African Region. The WHO Health Emergencies Programme is currently monitoring 51 events in the region. This week’s edition covers key new and ongoing events, including:
- Declaration of the control of cholera outbreak in Borno State, Nigeria
- Hepatitis E in Namibia
- Humanitarian crisis in Central African Republic
Cholera in South Sudan
For each of these events, a brief description followed by public health measures implemented and an interpretation of the situation is provided.
A table is provided at the end of the bulletin with information on all new and ongoing public health events currently being monitored in the region, as well as events that have recently been closed.
Major challenges include:
The humanitarian crisis in Central African Republic continues to deteriorate in the central region of the country. The seasonal migration of people and livestock to new grazing grounds is expected to trigger increased violence in the centre and northeast regions of the country and with it, even greater need for humanitarian assistance. The insecurity in the region must be urgently addressed to facilitate an effective response by WHO and partners.
The outbreak of cholera in South Sudan has markedly decreased as a result of concerted efforts by the national authorities and humanitarian actors. However, the humanitarian crisis in South Sudan continues to worsen, and the WASH situation remains poor, so authorities must remain vigilant to prevent a resurgence of cases.