Cholera spread: a symptom of structural failures

Cholera spread: a symptom of structural failures

Lebanon has been cholera-free since 1993. On October 6, 2022, that changed when the Ministry of Public Health reported two laboratory-confirmed cholera cases in the country’s northern region. Since then, the numbers of cases and deaths have increased at an alarming rate. The current situation according to the Lebanese Ministry of Public Health website on November 21 shows 20 cumulative deaths and 4,008 suspected and confirmed cases, 25 percent of which are among individuals 4 years of age and below. Cholera outbreaks are also reported in other countries in the region, including Syria and Iraq. Cholera is an acute rapidly dehydrating diarrheal infection caused by the ingestion of food or water contaminated with the bacterium Vibrio cholerae. It is strongly connected to inadequate sanitation.

Lebanon’s response to the outbreak so far has included launching the government’s emergency appeal requesting support from the international community to procure vaccines, medicines, and water test kits. The World Health Organization (WHO) secured 600,000 doses of cholera vaccine from the International Coordination Group to vaccinate all refugees and host communities aged 1 year and above. On a local level, residents received information through various media outlets on how to wash hands and mixed messages about how