Four people have died from suspected cholera in fishing camps located in Shibuyunji of Central Province leading to the Ministry of Health to shutting down seven illegal fishing camps.
The district has so far recorded 10 cases of cholera.Health Minister Chitalu Chilufya who conducted an on-the-spot check at some of the fishing camps said the death of four people at Chiyasa fishing camp was unacceptable.
Dr Chilufya was accompanied on the visit by minister in the Vice-President’s Office Sylvia Chalikosa, ministry of Livestock and Fisheries Permanent Secretary David Shamulenge, Health Permanent Secretary Kennedy Malama and Disaster Management and Mitigation Unit National Coordinator Yande Musonda.
Dr Chilufya said it was sad that people could be living in a place that had no water and the necessary sanitary facilities for human habitation.
He said it was unacceptable that at a time the Government was fighting cholera, people in other areas were still adamantly living in conditions that promoted the disease.
The camps were found at the time of the visit.
“All the fishing camps we have visited have no clean drinking water and sanitation services,” Dr Chilufya said.
He said the Government was working to ensure that cholera was eliminated and had provided a centre in Shibuyunji to vaccinate the people against cholera in the fishing area.
Livestock and Fisheries Permanent Secretary David Shamulenge said his ministry was putting up measures to empower people with the means to earn a living away from illegal fishing camps and encourage them to abide by fishing bans.
And giving a cholera update at Mutima Fishing Camp in Shibuyunji, Dr Chilufya said that 16 new cholera cases had been recorded in Lusaka in 24 hours on Tuesday.
He said despite the heavy downpour experienced in Lusaka, there had been no spike in the cases of cholera as the trend has continued to go down every week.
“From February 7, Shibuyunji has contributed to the cumulative number of cholera cases of 33 in which four deaths have been recorded in the illegal fishing camps,” Dr Chilufya said.
Dr Chilufya said the multi sectoral response team was heightening measures to make sure that cholera was eradicated within the coming few weeks
[Times of Zambia]
Kampamba Mulenga will now be Minister of fishing camps??? That’s an insult, all that perfume.
We told her to stop insulting Kambwili, now she looks like NDC member.
She will blend in ok once she opens her dirty mouth!!
This cholera has become an epidermic.
Nakaiba Islamic School which is about a kilometer from one of those camps should have been closed too. But you don’t care because the children there come from poor families.
How does someone bribe a health inspector so that the school can remain open?
Maybe it’s “ubomba mwibala….”
But I thought fishing season was closed? Or does it mean that these camps are permanent settlements.
Zambian are really dirty and unhygienic. How do we accept living in filth and unsanitary places. Do you really need the government to tell you that where you are living, working or trading is dirty and unsanitary. That is why I strongly believe that 70% of the problems we have are caused by the general population and not political leadership because we fail to take up responsibility. We have set very low standards for ourselves and accept mediocrity. In the 25 years I worked in Zambia if you tried to jack up standards or instill a positive work culture you were labelled as been inhuman. We except the country to develop magically without changing our mindset and working hard. Nay, not even prayers without hard work will help!
Cholera in fishing camps can never end because fishermen defecate in the water
Let’s design floating toilets then.
And fish will eat the faeces which will be sold to you at some market, Chief Bootlicker!!
Ndanji
I hope you are not that ignorant
Problem with you Spaka is that the bitterness has taken the fun out of you. You can’t even see the irony in the item. You’ll die of depression.
All this boils down to ignorance…you will find almost 90 % of those fishermen have At least done primary education, we need an environmental awareness subject right a primary school….puting up “wash your hands” posters is not working…..lets teach our primary kids environmental pollution , recycling, importance of following laid regulations and the need to plant trees….by the time the next generation hit the streets we will have a complete change in attitudes
ARE WE STILL IN CHOLERA CHAPTER? I THOUGHT THIS CHOLERA THING IS A CLEANED UP ISSUE.
@Habeenzu, I agree with you my mate Zambians are good at blaming and escape accountability. Its time we changed our mindset and responsibility.
Meanwhile;
“An announcement on Feb 7 declared the end of a cholera epidemic in South Sudan. Talha Burki reports on controlling an epidemic in a country in the midst of civil war” (from The Lancet)