Cholera Crisis: Nigeria among seven worst-hit nations as global deaths surge

Global deaths from cholera increased by 30 per cent in 2025 despite a decline in the number of reported infections, according to the World Health Organization.

The WHO said 47 countries recorded 451,499 cholera cases and 7,870 deaths during the year, making 2025 the deadliest year for cholera reported to the organisation since 1999.

The figures were contained in the WHO’s latest Weekly Epidemiological Record, published on September 29, 2026.

The agency warned that the reported figures are unlikely to represent the full scale of the disease, as many infections and deaths go undetected or are not included in national surveillance systems.

Seven countries, Angola, Bangladesh, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Nigeria, South Sudan, Sudan and Yemen, accounted for about 90 per cent of all reported cholera cases and deaths globally.

Africa experienced the sharpest deterioration, with reported cases increasing by 34 per cent and deaths rising by 58 per cent compared with 2024.

“The rise in cholera deaths is a reminder of the challenge ahead,” said Dr Chikwe Ihekweazu, Executive Director of the WHO Health Emergencies Programme.

He said many cholera deaths could be avoided through prompt medical intervention and sustained improvements in access to clean water, sanitation and hygiene.

“No one should be dying from cholera today when we have the tools to prevent and treat this disease,” he said.

The WHO also noted that more than 20 per cent of recorded cholera deaths occurred outside health facilities, suggesting that a significant number of patients may not reach medical centres in time to receive treatment.

Among patients treated in health facilities, the global case-fatality rate remained below one per cent. However, 12 countries recorded rates exceeding one per cent in 2025.

Meanwhile, access to oral cholera vaccines expanded significantly. Global annual production rose from around 30 million doses in 2022 to approximately 80 million doses in 2025.

The WHO said 24 of the 26 countries within Africa’s meningitis belt reported 21,526 suspected meningitis cases and 971 deaths in 2025.

Among countries that provided comparable data for 2024 and 2025, suspected cases declined by 5.9 per cent.

On plague, the WHO reported that 10 countries notified the agency of suspected human infections between 2019 and 2025, while six reported confirmed cases.

Across the seven-year period, 3,847 suspected plague cases and 423 deaths were reported.