UNICEF and partners are providing assistance to more than 100,000 people – including 48,000 children – affected by heavy floods in the South Kivu province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), warning of an increased risk of a cholera outbreak, as rains continue.
The rains lasted from April 16 to the 18th, causing the banks of the river Mulongwe and Rusizi to burst and sweep away people and homes in the town of Uvira and surrounding areas. Homes in the surrounding area have been impacted, and the waters supply system will be experiencing major disruption. This disruption to the water supply heightens the risk of Cholera to a region that experiences year round outbreaks.
UNICEF and its partners have already been deployed to the area to combat COVID-19, and are currently providing:
Medical assistance to children under five, elderly people, pregnant and lactating women;
Supply of basic medicines and equipment to health centres caring for affected populations, including management of cholera cases;
Nutrition support to children suffering from severe acute malnutrition and Vitamin A supplementation for children under 5 in the Uvira Health Zone;
Psychosocial support to affected children and families, and temporary shelter for separated children;
Delivery of infection prevention and control supplies to 8 health centers and two Reference Hospitals;
Installation of 6 water treatment stations providing 240,000 litres of water per day;
Routine vaccination services to children in the Uvira Health Zone.
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