Another wave of cholera could strike Yemen in 2018, where a Saudi-led coalition blockade has cut off fuel for hospitals, water pumps and vital aid supplies for starving children, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Sunday.
Dr. Nevio Zagaria, WHO country representative in Yemen, told that 16 per cent of Yemeni children under the age of five suffer from acute malnutrition, including 5.2 per cent with a severe form that is life-threatening, and the problem is increasing.
Some 960,000 suspected cases of cholera and 2,219 deaths have been reported since the epidemic began in April, WHO figures show.
Children account for nearly a third of infections of the waterborne disease which can prove fatal if left untreated.
A campaign of oral cholera vaccination — initially planned last July was abandoned by authorities. It is now under reconsideration,he said. The United Nations appealed on Friday to the coalition to fully lift its blockade of Yemen, which was partially eased last week to let aid into Hodeidah and Salif, and U.N. flights into Sana'a.
"WHO supports 130 hospitals across the country, providing fuel, water, oxygen, drugs, medical supplies and essential equipment. The (fuel) contractors that we are working with are finding difficulty in keeping the stock," he said, noting that some hospitals require 60,000 litres of fuel per month. "The deterioration of the situation in terms of malnutrition in children is increasing... It is very difficult to quantify with precise numbers," said Dr. Zagaria.
