Cholera outbreaks sweep across 23 African nations, inundating the continent
In 2025, Africa has been grappling with a significant cholera outbreak, exacerbated by insufficient resources, worsening conditions during the rainy season, and logistical challenges.
The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has been one of the hardest-hit countries, with over 38,000 cases and nearly 1,000 deaths reported by the end of July 2025. The death rate reached 8% in areas like Kinshasa, particularly where flooding intensified cases and overwhelmed health facilities [1][4].
Across Africa, more than 305,000 cholera cases and 3,500 deaths have been reported across 28 countries, primarily in the Eastern Mediterranean and African regions. Underreporting likely means the actual numbers are higher [2][5].
The rainy season, with heavy rains and flooding, significantly worsens transmission by contaminating water sources and increasing displacement, facilitating the spread of the bacteria. For example, outbreaks worsened in provinces affected by floods such as Sud-Kivu, Tanganyika, and Kinshasa in the DRC [1][4].
Aid efforts face significant constraints. The global stockpile of Oral Cholera Vaccine (OCV) in June 2025 dropped to 2.9 million doses, below the emergency threshold of 5 million, limiting vaccine campaign coverage in affected areas [2][5].
UNICEF warns that around 80,000 children in West and Central Africa are at risk during the rainy season due to limited access to clean water, sanitation, and vaccination. Emergency funding needs to increase to $20 million urgently to improve emergency responses and vaccination campaigns [4].
Compounding factors include ongoing conflicts, population displacement, flooding, and logistical challenges that delay effective cholera outbreak responses, especially in high-burden countries like the DRC, South Sudan, Angola, Nigeria, and others in Central and Western Africa [1][4].
In Sudan, only 35 percent of the population has access to clean water, and in South Sudan, only 16 percent of the population has access to sanitation facilities. In regions like Darfur, South Kordofan, and Blue Nile, 80 percent of hospitals are closed, and over 60 percent of water treatment facilities are out of operation [1][4].
Tropical medicine specialist Maximilian Gertler reports a "staggeringly high" mortality rate of 20 to 30 percent in the early phase of the cholera outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo, which can be reduced to less than 1 percent with adequate medical supplies and infrastructure [3].
The mortality rate for cholera cases in Africa this year is 2.1 percent, up from 1.9 percent last year [2]. The UN Refugee Agency reports 4,300 cholera cases in the North Darfur region, and the number of cases is increasing in Tawila, where around 370,000 people have fled [1].
In conclusion, the increased mortality from cholera in Africa in 2025 is linked to insufficient vaccine supplies and healthcare access, worsened by rainy-season flooding and displacement that drive transmission. Aid efforts are ongoing but underfunded and insufficient relative to the scale of the crisis [1][2][4][5].
- To combat the ongoing cholera crisis, it might be necessary to revise and enhance both the community policy and employment policy, focusing on health services and infrastructure development.
- In light of the increasing number of cholera cases and deaths, studying the impact of cholera on digestive health and respiratory conditions could provide essential insights for medical research and policy-making.
- As cholera outbreaks are exacerbated by insufficient resources and worsening conditions during the rainy season, promoting health-and-wellness, fitness-and-exercise, and nutrition awareness in affected regions could help improve overall population health.
- Considering the concerning prevalence of cholera in Africa this year, it is crucial to lobby for increased emergency funding to address the shortage of vaccines, medical supplies, and infrastructure in affected countries, enhancing overall cholera management and survivability.
