BY ELIZABETH JOHN
Health officials in Ikwoto County have on Tuesday confirmed that the cholera death toll has risen to 30, with 387 suspected cases.
Speaking to Radio Emmanuel in an exclusive interview on Tuesday, Lokenyi Julius, the Ikwoto County Health Director, suspected cholera cases killed 30, with 387 suspected cases in April.
He states that the South Sudan Red Cross has established a handwashing facility within Ikwoto market as a move to fight against cholera in the country.
South Sudan Red Cross are with us in the county to confront and to respond at the side of cholera they are fighting cholera by giving awareness to the population of ikwoto county and health education and also part of NGOs like UNH have also being fighting and helping together with the county they also give awareness and health education, and now in the market there is a hand washing facility establish by south Sudan red cross meanwhile they move from area to area educating they population on how they can hygiene and the gears of preventing cholera.
Ikwoto County received the cholera vaccines in all six payams, while saying no suspected cholera cases have been registered in May.
Since April when we concluded with the campaign of cholera the outbreak was so survive that made twenty dead and three hundred and eighty-seven cases recorded and since then up to now, we have not registered any cases the population of ikwoto county has no suspected have being register all the six payams of ikwoto county are claim no cases being in team of percentage ninety-seven percentage of the population have been vaccinated.
The health official advises the entire public, especially women and children, to protect themselves from communicable diseases as the rainy season approaches.
He, however, urges the state government and humanitarian partners to support the local communities with mosquito nets to fight against malaria across Eastern Equatoria.
My message to the communities is that, cholera is the communicable disease which now season it can move from community to community, so very community remain vigilant in preventing themselves women and children from this communicable diseases not only that but also this season is the raining season population should also made use of a mosquito net this is wet season malaria cases are going to being high, our health facilities has no mosquito net so mother w coming for antenatal care has no pocket mosquito net being given to them, I therefore ask all the stakeholders the government and the NGOs to support the communities in fighting malaria.
The speaker made the statement to Emmanuel in a phone interview on Tuesday.