Lorenzo Pezzoli, the World Health Organization’s (WHO) lead for epidemic-prone bacterial diseases, said its 2030 cholera target remains achievable, Anadolu Agency reported, as WHO recorded 7,870 deaths in 2025.
Anadolu Agency reported that Pezzoli described 2025 as the deadliest year for cholera since 1999. WHO’s annual report said 47 countries reported 451,499 cases and 7,870 deaths that year.
Anadolu Agency also reported that Pezzoli cited more than 3,000 cholera deaths worldwide from January through September 2026, with nearly 90% in Africa.
WHO’s 2017 Global Roadmap to 2030 aims to cut cholera deaths by 90% and eliminate cholera transmission in up to 20 countries. WHO’s place-of-death data show the limits of available records: Among 5,734 deaths reported by 23 countries that submitted data, 1,302 were in communities, 2,994 in health facilities and 1,438 had no location recorded.
Pezzoli said faster access to care is essential to preventing deaths, Anadolu Agency reported. WHO identifies inadequate access to safe water and sanitation, conflict, displacement, climate events and underinvestment as cholera risk factors.
Pezzoli warned that El Nino-related flooding and water scarcity could both make outbreaks harder to control, and cited conflict as another obstacle, Anadolu Agency reported. WHO urged governments to strengthen national cholera plans, improve early detection and access to treatment, and invest in water and sanitation systems.
WHO’s 2025 report said the International Coordinating Group (ICG) on Vaccine Provision approved 71 million of the 116 million doses requested that year, including 20 million for preventive use. Preventive vaccination resumed in Mozambique in 2026, where the first such campaign in more than three years was launched; WHO said campaigns were planned in other countries.
These efforts address both medical response and the infrastructure conditions that contribute to cholera risk. The climate and health connection also featured in EconoTimes’ earlier coverage of El Nino health risks into 2027.
