Khartoum: Tom Fletcher, United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator at OCHA, announced the allocation of US$5 million to support urgent response efforts to the cholera outbreak in Sudan.
According to Emirates News Agency, Fletcher stated that this new funding will enable UN agencies to enhance time-critical health, water, sanitation, and hygiene activities to curb the spread of the disease. However, there is an urgent need for additional resources, as humanitarian partners require $50 million to sustain cholera response operations through the end of 2025.
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) highlighted that the outbreak is exacerbated by ongoing conflict, mass displacement, and the collapse of public health and water systems.
Since July 2024, Sudanese health authorities have reported more than 84,000 suspected cases and over 2,100 deaths across 17 of Sudan's 18 states, with over 33,000 cases reported this year alone. However, partners cautioned that under-reporting might be obscuring the true magnitude of the outbreak. More than 33.5 million people, including 5.7 million children under 5, are at risk.
Khartoum, Aj Jazirah, Gedaref, and White Nile states account for over 70 percent of all reported cases. Khartoum alone has reported more than 23,400 suspected cases. The outbreak is now spreading in Darfur, with cross-border transmission reported into Chad and South Sudan.
OCHA warned that the ongoing rainy season, which extends through October, poses a threat to exacerbate the crisis by contaminating water sources and driving further infections.