Ghana issues alert on cholera

Ghana's Ministry of Health on Friday issued an alert over the possible outbreak of cholera as one case has been recorded in the capital.

In a public notice signed by Victor Bampoe, Deputy Health Minister, the ministry said some communities were still inundated with risk factors that promoted the spread of cholera, hence the need for strict sanitary practices.

"This correspondence is to formally notify all and serve as a reminder that, as the rains have set in, and some cities and towns might have experienced flooding, together with other existing risk factors, the potential and tendency for recurrence of cholera outbreak is very high," the notice said.

According to the alert, other risk factors include intense population movements, inadequate supply of safe water, poor food and personal hygiene practices.

Cholera, a bacterial disease that is spread usually by eating contaminated food or drinking contaminated water, remains a major public health challenge in Ghana.

In 2014, Ghana was hit by a massive cholera outbreak, which recorded the highest number of cases in the past 30 years.

During that outbreak, a total of 28,975 cases, including 247 deaths, were reported from all the 10 regions of the country, with 70 percent of the cases occurring in Accra. Enditem