Cholera outbreak claims at least 30 lives in Central African Republic

A cholera outbreak in the Central African Republic is continuing to spread, with 435 suspected cases and 36 deaths reported as of July 6.

The outbreak, which is affecting the health districts of Bangui 2, Bimbo and Mbaiki, was officially declared on June 26, 2026, after laboratory confirmation by the Institut Pasteur in Bangui.

Healthcare workers have been managing the influx of patients in isolated treatment centers. According to Jean de Dieu Longo, a research officer at the Ministry of Health authorities, the transmission of the waterborne disease has been attributed to the Ubangi River.

"The first step was to break the chain of transmission, as the primary source we suspected was water; the riverside communities obtain their drinking water from the river, and some also defecate in the river or relieve themselves there. In this regard, the message we conveyed to the public focused on raising awareness of basic hygiene, particularly hand washing, water treatment, and also to reactivate water points, particularly the boreholes that are dotted throughout the area," Longo says.

Residents are also calling on authorities to install proper drainage infrastructure. Ornella Monrdi says there is a need to redirect contaminated wastewater away from residential areas. "Please help us to clean up our environment."

The public has been urged to follow preventive measures and appropriate health guidance to reduce infection rates of cholera.

Meanwhile, UNICEF is scaling up its support to the country's Ministry of Health and Population to help contain the outbreak, as active transmission continues in the affected areas.