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Africa’s public health agency says vaccines are not “readily available” amid global supply shortages in countries with deadly cholera outbreaks on the continent.
acting director of African Center for Disease Control and PreventionAhmed Ogwell told journalists on Thursday that the agency was working with the World Health Organization and the Vaccine Alliance GAVI on how to get more doses.
of Africa CDC We are also working with two local manufacturers to see if they can reuse their facilities to manufacture. cholera vaccinesaid Ogwell. he didn’t say either.
In October, WHO and its partners advised countries to temporarily switch from two doses of cholera vaccine to one dose because of supply shortages due to a global outbreak of waterborne disease.
They said that “although there is limited evidence as to the exact duration of protection,” a single dose of the vaccine has proven effective in stopping outbreaks and appears to be lower in children. rice field.
The WHO noted that Haiti and Syria are also trying to contain large outbreaks. WHO Partner agencies manage stockpiles of cholera vaccine that are distributed free of charge to countries in need.
Malawi, in southern Africa in particular, is suffering from a cholera epidemic. The country has recorded 3,577 new cases, including 111 deaths, in the past week, Ogwell said. They account for the majority of new cholera cases on the continent.
Ogwell said there have been 27,300 new cases of cholera, including 687 deaths, in five African countries since the beginning of 2023.
of WHO Climate change could make cholera epidemics more common, he said, because the bacteria that cause the disease can multiply more quickly in warmer waters.
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