22 November 2018 – The Ministry of Health of Somalia has announced 21 new suspected cases of cholera, with no deaths, for epidemiological week 45 (5 to 11 November) of 2018. Of these new cases, 67% (14) are females while 43% (9) are children below five years of age. The cumulative total of cases is 6560, including 44 associated deaths (case-fatality rate 0.6%), since the beginning of the current outbreak in December 2017 along the Shabelle River. As of today, of the 315 stool samples tested in the National Public Health Laboratory (NPHL) since the beginning of this year, 97 tested positive for Vibrio cholerae, serotype O1 Ogawa.
There has been a downward trend of suspected cases reported weekly over the past 17 weeks, from a peak of 296 cases in epidemiological week 23 to 21 cases in this reporting period. In week 45, active transmission of AWD/cholera was reported in eight districts in the Banadir region: Darkenley, Daynile, Hodan, Madina, Hamarjabab, Hawlwadag, Weberi and Wardigley. To date, 2813 cases, with 22 deaths (CFR 0.8%), have been reported only in Banadir, which represents 42% of the total cumulative number of cases in the country since the outbreak started. The Banadir region, which includes Mogadishu City, has one of the highest concentrations of internally displaced persons (IDPs), and access to safe water and proper sanitation is limited for this vulnerable population. All cases reported this week are among the IDP population.
WHO is providing leadership and support for activities with the Ministry of Health (MoH) to respond to this continued outbreak. WHO has continued to support clinical care delivery, including supervision and monitoring of case management in cholera treatment centers. Surveillance and investigation of rumors have been ongoing and promptly investigated, all alerts have been responded to across the country through the early warning alert and response network (EWARN), and routine collection and analysis of stool samples have continued at NPHL. During this reporting period, a mission from WHO’s Eastern Mediterranean Regional Office was done to assess the implementation of cholera response activities.
