The announcement was made this Thursday, when the head of the Health Ministry spoke at the Aníbal de Melo Press Center (CIAM), during an update on data on cholera and actions implemented to prevent the disease.
Quoted in a statement from the Ministry of Health, to which VerAngola had access, Sílvia Lutucuta announced that approximately 700,000 doses have been in the country since the beginning of this week.
The minister said that the country "requested the International Emergency Vaccine Coordinating Group and was authorized to acquire 940,000 doses of vaccines, followed by a new negotiation in which Angola was authorized to acquire around 700,000 doses for the most affected areas, which have already been in the country since March 17", reads the note.
In terms of response to the outbreak, the governor recalled the implementation of a vaccination campaign in the more than 90 neighborhoods most affected by cholera.
"The minister stressed that in the complementary response to cholera, the cholera vaccination campaign was implemented in the 98 most affected neighborhoods in the municipalities of Cacuaco, Sequele, Dande, Úcua, Panguila and Nabuangongo", says the statement, which points out that, in this sense, "a total of 925,026 inhabitants were vaccinated, corresponding to a coverage of 86 percent of the estimated population".
"Within the Contingency Plan for Response to Cholera, the minister stated that among several actions, 77 cholera treatment centers were installed in all the most affected areas and 64 oral rehydration centers were installed, with INEMA ambulances, which are provided by the public order forces and the residents' committee", reads the note.
Cholera has killed more than 300 people since January
More than 300 people have died from cholera in the country since January 7, with a total of 8141 cases in 14 provinces, the Ministry of Health announced.
According to the latest epidemiological bulletin for March 20, the country registered 191 new cases and 15 more deaths, six in Cuanza Norte, Luanda (6), Icolo and Bengo (2) and Bengo (1).
The province of Cuanza Norte, which in less than a week has recorded 33 deaths and in the last 24 hours has registered 59 new cases, is the greatest concern for central and local authorities.
Since the beginning of the outbreak, a cumulative total of 8141 cases have been reported, with 4026 in Luanda province (epicentre of the disease), Bengo (2428), Icolo e Bengo (796), Cuanza Norte (357), Benguela (194), Malanje (181), Zaire (44), Cuanza Sul (36), Cabinda (33), Huambo (22), Uíge (15), Huíla (7), and the provinces of Cunene and Cubango with one case each.
There have been 313 deaths since the beginning of the epidemic, of which 151 were in Luanda, 92 in Bengo province, 33 in Cuanza Norte, 21 in Icolo and Bengo, Benguela (7), Malanje (4), Cuanza Sul (3) and Zaire and Cabinda with one death each.
Authorities have declared a sanitary cordon in the town of Luinha, in the municipality of Cazengo, in the province of Cuanza Norte, where there has been an increase in cholera cases in recent days.
The Minister of Health, Sílvia Lutucuta, said on Thursday night in Luanda that the province of Cuanza Norte recorded 40 percent of cholera deaths in the last week and has the highest fatality rate.
