2.9m cholera vaccine doses in today

Malawi will today receive 2.9 doses of cholera vaccine expected to be administered in 14 targeted districts.

This follows the successful first round campaign in May this year, which targeted 14 districts with 1.9 doses.

Speaking in an interview yesterday, Ministry of Health spokesperson Adrian Chikumbe said the vaccination exercise will soon be carried out in all districts in the North, all districts in the Centre and Zomba, Blantyre and Nsanje in the South.

He said: “We are looking at the burdens in the districts. For Nsanje, we are repeating the exercise because of the area called Ndamera which is endemic as it is located close to an area in Mozambique which continuously reports cholera cases.”

According to Chikumbe, the World Health Organisation is providing the vaccine, adding that Malawi could not get more doses due to vaccine demand in other countries.

He said there is only one supplier for cholera vaccine and since many countries are affected by pre-season cholera this year, Malawi is facing tough competition to get the vaccine.

In a separate interview, Malawi University of Science and Technology microbiologist Gama Bandawe, who predicted a rise in the cases during the rainy season, called on authorities to intensify vaccination campaigns, especially in communities that are exposed to the cholera outbreak.

According to statistics from the Ministry of Health, on Saturday the country registered 65 new cases and two new deaths, bringing the cumulative confirmed number of cases and deaths to 6 720 and 200, respectively.

All 28 districts have reported cholera cases since the confirmation of the first case this year in March in Machinga District.