Médecins Sans Frontières, MSF warned of the risks of malaria and cholera outbreaks in Maiduguri after catastrophic flooding has displaced 400,000 people and killed 24 people in the city.
It warned that the situation could get even worse with hunger rates increasing and waterborne diseases spreading quickly through the affected communities should immediate medical and humanitarian intervention be absent.
MSF warned that the flooding is exposing the city to a heightened risk of malaria, as well as waterborne diseases, particularly cholera, as large swathes of the city are submerged under water, a statement Saturday by Field Communications Manager Zoe Bennell and Communication Officer Abdulkareem Yakubu said.
It also warned that the situation could exacerbate malnutrition in the affected areas.
The statement partly reads “We are very concerned about the precarious living conditions and the potential outbreaks of cholera and malaria”, says Dr Issaley Abdel Kader MSF Head of Mission in Nigeria.
“The number of children affected by malaria and acute watery diarrhoea had already started to increase before the flooding, and we have seen some with clinical signs of cholera since the floods.
“We are afraid that the number of cases will rise without the increase of medical and humanitarian support, especially regarding water, sanitation and hygiene.”
MSF said its teams went to several displacement sites (Galtimari, Yerwa, Ali Sheriff, Vocational Enterprise Institute, Teachers Village) to assess people’s needs and started the provision of essential services such as access to water through water trucking and water tanks, the installation and repair of latrines, and the distribution of mosquito nets.
“Teams are also running outpatient consultations in the sites, including mental.”
