Thousands of children in Sudan at risk of cholera

Thousands of children in eastern Sudan are at risk of cholera following a major outbreak that hit the country in August, caused by widespread flooding and contaminated water amid a decimated health system due to the ongoing conflict in the country.

According to Save the Children, a London-based humanitarian organization working for children, nearly 2,900 cases of cholera and 112 deaths have been reported between July 22 and the beginning of September.

The organization's teams are reporting a huge spike in cholera cases among children under five in El Damer in River Nile State and Gedarif in Gedarif State, accounting for nearly 15 percent of the confirmed cases and deaths across the country.

The rapid cholera spread is attributed to inadequate sewage treatment, flooding, and unsafe drinking water; conditions worsened by relentless heavy rains that have battered much of the country for the past three months.

"Children in Sudan have gone from horror to horror. Even before the conflict erupted last year the country was home to one of the world's biggest humanitarian crises, with existing localized conflicts, natural disasters, disease outbreaks and economic degradation leaving 15.8 million people in need," Mohamed Abdiladif, interim country director for Save the Children in Sudan, said.

"That figure has now escalated to 25.6 million people, and diseases like cholera will only trigger a greater increase."

Abdiladif said his organization is working on ensuring access to clean water, sanitation facilities, and hygiene promotion activities to prevent the spread of waterborne diseases such as cholera in conflict-affected areas.

"However, we urgently need a huge injection of funds to deliver the treatment needed for cholera," he said.

Heavy rains and flooding have so far displaced 4,300 people from displacement camps in North Darfur State, including the Zamzam camp, where famine was recently declared.

The flooding has destroyed around 900 tents and washed away latrines within these camps, severely disrupting humanitarian aid efforts, the organization said.