At least 30 people have been confirmed dead across 96 local governments in 30 states of Nigeria as a result of a cholera outbreak. 

According to the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) public health advisory published Thursday, out of a total of 1,141 suspected cases recorded in 2024, 65 cases of cholera were confirmed between Jan. 1 and Jun. 11. 

The states affected are Bayelsa, Zamfara, Abia, Cross River, Bauchi, Delta, Katsina, Imo, Nasarawa, and Lagos.

The disease mostly spreads through direct transmission by eating or drinking contaminated food or water, and indirect transmission due to poor sanitation and lack of handwashing.

Some of the symptoms of the disease are acute, painless, watery diarrhea of sudden onset, with or without vomiting. 

NCDC warned Nigerians to be more conscious as severe cases may lead to death within hours due to dehydration.

While cholera can be prevented by ensuring access to safe drinking water and proper sanitation, many Nigerians have the habit of improper waste disposal, a development that has become a pressing environmental challenge faced in urban and rural areas of the country.

Meanwhile, NCDC National Cholera Technical Working Group, said it has been providing support to the affected states.

“This support includes risk communication, active case search, laboratory diagnosis, case management, provision of response commodities, water sanitation and hygiene (WASH) interventions, and dissemination of Cholera awareness jingles in both English and local languages.”

Members of the technical working group are the Federal Ministries of Environment and Water Resources, the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), the World Health Organization (WHO), and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF).