Multi-country outbreak of cholera

Climate change have intensified outbreaks

From 1 January to 29 December 2024, a cumulative total of 804 721 cholera cases and 5805 deaths were reported from 33 countries across five WHO regions. The number of cases and deaths in December 2024 are 21% and 5% lower, respectively, than those reported in December 2023.

In December, Oral Cholera Vaccines production remained high at 5.5 million doses, thanks to a simplified formulation and production process introduced and prequalified in 2024. This new formulation and process allowed the average stockpile to rise to 5.9 million doses in December compared to 3.5 million and 0.6 million, respectively in November and October – exceeding the five million doses needed for emergency stockpile at all times for effective outbreak response. However, the increased production has yet to meet growing global demand, as demand continues to exceed supply, which continues to hinder efforts to control cholera outbreaks and respond rapidly to the disease’s spread.

Conflict, mass displacement, disasters from natural hazards, and climate change have intensified outbreaks, particularly in rural and flood-affected areas, where poor infrastructure and limited healthcare access delay treatment. These cross-border factors have made cholera outbreaks increasingly complex and harder to control.