Our Board Chair, Professor Christopher Garimoi Orach, in his capacity as a professor at the Makerere School of Public Health, Kampala and with affiliation to Ministry of Health, is among a team of 22 who conducted a study on cholera and have authored an article titled:

“New Vibrio cholera sequences from Eastern and Southern Africa alter our understanding of regional cholera transmission.”

Among the study findings, the revelation that:

“Evidence that previously identified sporadic cases may be from larger, under-sampled outbreaks, highlighting the need for careful examination of sampling biases and underscoring the need for continued and expanded cholera surveillance across the African continent.”

The first author of the article is Shaoming Xiao of the Division of Pediatric Infectious Diseases, John Hopkins University School of Medicine. A pdf of the article (a preprint) published in March 2024 is available to download here.

Cholera, an acute diarrheal disease, symptomized by watery diarrhea, vomiting and dehydration, among others, is a real concern in Uganda.

According to researchers, Adams Kamukama et al, in an article titled: “Cholera outbreak associated with drinking contaminated water in Kayunga District, Uganda, June-August 2023”, since 1971, Cholera outbreaks occur annually in Uganda.

For instance, Kamukama and team highlighted that since 2015-2021, there were 63 outbreaks reported affecting 43 districts.

That 68% of the Cholera cases in the Kamukama et al study were patients who had used water from River Nile – for domestica use (cleaning, washing dishes, etc.) and drinking it untreated and or un-boiled, should be of significant concern.

“Young boys on River Nile @ Nicholas Bamulanzeki – Source: The Observer

We should all be concerned by how the water of River Nile got Cholera contaminated due to open defecation and or washing soiled clothes along the river, according to the research findings.  

On a positive note, it is within our means in Uganda to easily relegate Cholera to history books and museums, by simply ensuring we all do not defecate in the open. Outlawing the practice of washing anything by the water front is within our means to do as well.

Prevention mechanism, moreover, are much cheaper alternatives to the resources spent on fighting Cholera outbreaks. And, in addition, the toll the disease takes on those infected, with a knock-on effect of reducing the quantity and quality of our labour force and therefore, economy, is costly.

Let us all be pro-active in encouraging the adoption of hygiene practices that will eliminate Cholera in our homes, villages, parishes, sub-counties, districts and our nation as a whole. Yes, we can.