MAPUTO, Feb. 27 (Xinhua) -- About 720,000 people aged one year and older in eight districts of Mozambique will be vaccinated against cholera from Monday to Friday, as part of the health authorities' efforts to control the outbreak, in which 5,260 cases and 37 deaths have been recorded since September 2022.
"The vaccination campaign will be crucial in stemming the spread of cholera and help save lives," said Severin von Xylander, World Health Organization (WHO) representative in Mozambique, in a statement released Monday.
The vaccine will be specifically administered in the districts of Lago, Lichinga, Mandimba, Mecanhelas and Sanga, in Niassa province; Milange, in Zambezia; Caia, in Sofala; and Xai-Xai, in Gaza.
People will receive the vaccination in health centers, through mobile teams, or by door-to-door visits.
Mozambique received around 720,000 doses of the oral cholera vaccine from the WHO.
"We are also working with the health authorities to bolster key outbreak response measures and have deployed staff in the three most affected provinces to support the provincial health authorities to detect, prevent and halt this cholera outbreak," said the WHO official.
Parallel to the immunization of the population, surveillance of diarrhea is taking place in all districts for the early detection of outbreaks and the implementation of control measures, read the statement.
According to the statement, the WHO disbursed 856,000 U.S. dollars to support the response to the cholera outbreak in Mozambique, in addition to medical supplies and medicines. The country is ready in terms of human resources and medicines for the clinical and diagnostic approach to cases of waterborne diseases, especially as it is the rainy season. ■