The World Health Organization (WHO) Has Reported That Cholera Has Claimed More Lives For The Second Consecutive Year.

In its global cholera statistics for 2024, WHO highlighted an increase in both cases and fatalities associated with the disease.

In a statement released on Friday, WHO emphasized that prevention and treatment options are available. The report shows a 5 percent rise in reported cholera cases and a 50 percent increase in deaths in 2024 compared to 2023, with over 6,000 lives lost to a preventable and treatable illness. These figures likely underestimate the actual impact of cholera worldwide.

Factors such as conflict, climate change, population displacement, and longstanding deficiencies in water, sanitation, and hygiene infrastructure continue to drive the increase in cholera cases.

Describing the disease, WHO noted that cholera is caused by Vibrio cholerae bacteria and spreads quickly through water contaminated with feces. In 2024, 60 countries reported cases, up from 45 countries in 2023.

The burden remains heavily concentrated in Africa, the Middle East, and Asia, which together accounted for 98 percent of all reported cases. The scope of outbreaks expanded in 2024, with 12 countries reporting more than 10,000 cases; notably, seven of these countries experienced large outbreaks for the first time.

The resurgence of cholera in Comoros, after over 15 years without outbreaks, highlights the ongoing global threat. The case fatality rate in Africa increased from 1.4 percent in 2023 to 1.9 percent in 2024, indicating critical gaps in the delivery of essential care and exposing vulnerabilities in many health systems.

A significant proportion of deaths about 25 percent occurred outside health facilities, underscoring the urgent need to improve community access to treatment and strengthen community-based interventions.

To combat cholera, it is essential for governments, donors, and communities to ensure access to safe water and sanitation, disseminate accurate information on protection measures, and facilitate rapid treatment and vaccination during outbreaks. Improved surveillance and diagnostics are vital for guiding responses, and increased investment in vaccine production remains necessary.

In early 2024, WHO prequalified a new oral cholera vaccine, Euvichol-S®, which was added to the global stockpile. This helped maintain stockpile levels above the emergency threshold of 5 million doses during the first half of 2025. Due to high demand, the current strategy continues to use a single-dose regimen instead of the standard two doses, a practice that began in 2024 and extends into 2025.

In 2024, requests for 61 million doses of the vaccine were made, with 40 million approved for emergency use in single-dose campaigns across 16 countries. Nevertheless, supply constraints persisted, outstripping demand in both 2024 and 2025.

Preliminary data indicates that the cholera crisis is ongoing into 2025, with 31 countries experiencing outbreaks so far this year. WHO has assessed the global risk as very high and is urgently working to reduce mortality and contain outbreaks worldwide.

To this end, WHO continues to support countries through enhanced public health surveillance, case management, preventive measures, provision of medical supplies, coordination with partners, and risk communication efforts.