Covid Vaccination-Laggard Congo Plans Rapid Cholera Inoculations

(Bloomberg) -- The Democratic Republic of Congo, a nation with one of the world’s lowest coronavirus inoculation rates, is planning to vaccinate 2 million people against cholera in six days, according to a statement by the World Health Organization. 

The African nation has been battling a cholera outbreak, which has infected 8,279 people and killed 153. About 4 million doses of the vaccine were delivered by the Global Task Force on Cholera Control and operational funding will be provided by vaccine alliance, Gavi.

“Cholera is a dangerous infection that can kill within hours if untreated, but it is predictable and preventable,” Amédée Djiguimdé, WHO’s officer-in-charge in Congo, said in the statement. “In addition to the vaccines, which are one of the effective measures against the disease, we are also providing clean water and reinforcing hygiene and sanitation to prevent the outbreak from spreading further.”

The WHO, United Nations Children’s Fund and others will assist the country’s health authorities to distribute the vaccines. Congo is the size of Western Europe with poor infrastructure, making any vaccination campaign logistically difficult and expensive. The nation has been struggling with roll-out of the coronavirus shot with only 0.2% of its population inoculated. 

About 3,600 health workers will be deployed to assist with the cholera vaccinations across three provinces, according to the WHO statement. 

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