LUSAKA, Jan. 19 (Xinhua) -- A total of 502,015 people living in cholera hotspot shanty compounds in Lusaka, the Zambian capital, have accessed the oral cholera vaccine since the launch of the vaccination exercise earlier this week, health authorities said Friday.
Minister of Health Sylvia Masebo said the vaccination was being administered in five shanty compounds in the Zambian capital where cholera was wreaking havoc.
She told reporters during a cholera update press briefing that the government was happy with the response since the launch of the exercise on Jan. 16.
Zambia has recorded a total of 11,304 cholera cases since last October with 448 deaths. The country received 1.4 million doses of cholera vaccines from the World Health Organization early this week to help curb the outbreak. ■