WHO raises alarm over Sudan Cholera outbreak and potential regional spread

The World Health Organization (WHO) has issued a stark warning about the intensifying cholera crisis in Sudan.

This cautioning comes as the disease is poised to spill across borders into neighbouring countries like Chad, where refugee camps are already overwhelmed and under-resourced.

Dr Shible Sahbani, WHO’s Representative in Sudan, said cholera has spread to at least 13 Sudanese states, including conflict-scarred North and South Darfur, both bordering Chad.

The outbreak has already claimed 1,854 lives, and without swift action, the death toll could rise significantly.

“Our concern is that cholera is spreading,” Sahbani said during a video briefing from Port Sudan.

“If we don’t invest in prevention, surveillance, early warning, vaccination, and public education, it could spread not only to neighbouring countries but potentially across the region.”

The cholera surge comes as Sudan enters its third year of civil war between the national army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a paramilitary faction.

The conflict has crippled the country’s healthcare infrastructure, disrupted clean water access, and worsened an already dire hunger crisis.

In Khartoum, recent drone strikes have knocked out electricity and water systems, creating the perfect storm for waterborne diseases like cholera to flourish.

The spillover risk is highest in Chad, where over 300,000 Sudanese refugees are crammed into makeshift camps along the border.

These sites are plagued by overcrowding, poor sanitation, and minimal access to healthcare, creating ideal conditions for a secondary outbreak.

“In overcrowded, unsanitary conditions, a potential outbreak could be devastating,” warned François Batalingaya, UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Chad.

He emphasized that chronic underfunding of relief operations is limiting the ability of aid agencies to respond to health threats.

Dr Sahbani urged all parties to facilitate humanitarian corridors and observe temporary ceasefires so that vaccination campaigns and health interventions can be launched — not just for cholera, but for malaria and dengue fever, which are also on the rise.

“We are in a race against time,” he said. “The longer we wait, the more lives will be lost — not just to war, but to preventable diseases.

Cholera is a highly contagious diarrhoeal disease, often fatal if untreated.

It spreads rapidly in areas without safe drinking water or basic sanitation — both of which are in short supply in Sudan and among displaced populations in neighbouring countries.

As Sudan’s war drags on, it’s not just bullets and bombs killing civilians — it’s waterborne diseases, crumbling infrastructure, and global indifference.

Without immediate international support, cholera could become the next major regional crisis.

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