Zimbabwe cholera death toll rises
Updated on 13 January 2009
The death toll from the cholera epidemic in Zimbabwe has risen to 2,024 people, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has said.
A further 39,806 people have contracted the normally preventable water-borne disease.
The epidemic is adding to the humanitarian crisis in the country, where President Robert Mugabe and the opposition are deadlocked over a power-sharing deal and the veteran leader is resisting Western calls to step down.
The disease, which causes severe diarrhoea and dehydration, has spread to all of Zimbabwe's ten provinces because of the collapse of health and sanitation systems.
The WHO said 89 per cent of the country's 62 districts are affected.
Zimbabwe's government has warned that the epidemic could get worse as the rainy season develops.
The rainy season peaks in January or February and ends in late March. Floods, which can affect Zimbabwe's low-lying areas, may increase the spread of the disease.
Cholera has spread to Zimbabwe's neighbours with at least 13 deaths and 1,419 cases in South Africa. Botswana, Mozambique and Zambia have also reported cholera cases.
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