Malawi Runs Out of Cholera Vaccine Stocks Amid Ongoing Worst Outbreak in Decade

Since March 2022, Malawi has been struggling with its worst cholera outbreak in a decade. As of January 20, the East African country registered at least 28,132 confirmed cases, including over 900 deaths, with the case fatality rate standing at 3.26%, according to an update from the country's Ministry of Health.

Stocks of cholera vaccine have run out in all health facilities in Malawi amid the worst outbreak of the deadly disease to hit the East African nation in a decade, the country’s Health Ministry said on Saturday.

The ministry pointed out that the stock of 2.9 million doses of the Gavi-supported Global Oral Cholera Vaccine Stockpile, delivered by the World Health Organization (WHO) in November 2022, had been entirely used up during Malawi’s ongoing cholera vaccination campaign.

“It is true that we no longer have cholera vaccines. We have used all the vaccines we had,” Adrian Chikumbe, spokesperson for the ministry, confirmed. “I would like to urge all Malawians to observe hygiene as we continue the fight against this disease.”

Chikumbe added that the government of Malawi is currently engaging the WHO for more deliveries of the vaccine.

Acknowledging that the government should play a key role in the fight against the rapid spread of the diarrheal illness, caused by infection of the intestine with Vibrio cholerae bacteria, health activist Maziko Matemba called on the public not to underestimate the deadly disease and to “observe cleanliness at all times.”

“The vaccines are very important and government should see to it that the country gets them as soon as possible. On the other hand, people should not relax because there are no vaccines but observe cleanliness at all times to avoid spread of the disease,” said Matemba.

As of Friday, the cholera death toll in Malawi had reached 916 as the country experiences the worst outbreak of the disease in a decade. The cumulative number of confirmed cases stands at 28,132, including over a thousand people currently hospitalized with the disease across the country.

The ongoing cholera outbreak in Malawi began in March 2022. Outbreaks of cholera in Malawi tend to be seasonal and occur mostly during the rainy season. The first cholera epidemic in the African nation occurred in 1998, when the disease began to spread in the south of the country. Notably, the current outbreak also started in the south of the country.