Continuous water supply: a decisive factor in the fight against cholera

Around 2.4 billion cases of diarrhoeal disease were recorded globally in 2015, causing approximately 500,000 deaths among children under five. Over 60% of these deaths were attributed to poor access to water and sani-tation. Cholera is an acute diarrhoeal disease which, if left untreated, can lead to death within hours. Each year, 1.3 to 4 million cases and 95,000 deaths - half of them affecting children under the age of five - are estimated to be due to cholera. In sub-Saharan Africa, more than half of all chol-era cases occur in “hotspots” accounting for less than 4% of the total population. The Global Task Force on Cholera Control (GTFCC) strategy targets these hotspots.