More than 1,180 cases of cholera-including around 300 in children-and at least 20 deaths were reported in Tawila, a city that has absorbed more than half a million people fleeing violence since April.
In the wider region of Darfur, the toll is even more alarming: nearly 2,140 cases and at least 80 deaths on July 30.
“” Despite being avoidable and easily treatable, cholera tears Tawila and elsewhere in Darfur, threatening the lives of children, especially the youngest and most vulnerable, »» said Sheldon Yett, Unicef Representative in Sudan.
With bombed hospitals and numerous health establishments have been closed, Tawila – located just 70 kilometers from the capital of the besieged state El Fasher – has become a flash point of crisis.
A limited access to drinking water, poor sanitation and overcrowded camps has created ideal conditions for the disease to spread.
Deepening of the disaster
The cholera epidemic takes place on a backdrop of Deepening of the disaster. Since the war between the rival soldiers broke out in April 2023, critical infrastructure was decimated, moved millions and dismantled food systems.
Famine has already been declared in at least 10 locations, including the vast Zamzam camp, with more than a dozen additional risk areas.
The extreme vulnerability of Sudan to climatic shocks – from droughts to devastating floods – has further aggravated the crisis, leaving families to navigate in the deadly intersection of conflicts, hunger, disease and environmental collapse.
More than 640,000 children at risk
Over 640,000 children under the age of five in northern Darfur are now in danger. Recent assessments show that the number of children with severe acute malnutrition in the region has doubled in the past year.
“” Children whose bodies are weakened by hunger are much more likely to contract cholera and die,”Unicef warned.
“” They cannot wait one more day.“”
Call for action
UNICEF urgently calls on all parties to ensure sustained, safe and unhindered humanitarian access. Bureaucratic delays, looted help convoys and active fights have hampered the delivery of vital supplies, including vaccines, therapeutic foods and medical kits.
The agency increases its emergency response to Tawila and through Darfur, distributing oral rehydration salts (gold), chlorinated water and hygiene kits.
Nearly 30,000 people in Tawila now have daily access to drinking water, while awareness teams sensitize prevention and early treatment.
Emergency funds
To support long -term containment, UNICEF plans to provide more than 1.4 million doses of oral cholera vaccinations and to strengthen treatment centers.
Additional supplies – soap, latrine slabs, plastic leaves – are being prepared, although access remains the largest obstacle.
Since the epidemic was officially declared in August 2024, more than 94,000 cases of cholera and more than 2,370 deaths have been reported in 17 of the 18 states of Sudan. UNICEF says it urgently requires $ 30.6 million to finance its response to emergency cholera.
Publicado anteriormente en Almouwatin.
