EU Approves €2.3m Emergency Aid To Fight Cholera In 4 African Countries

The European Commission has approved €2.3 million in emergency humanitarian assistance to Nigeria, Cameroon, the Central African Republic (CAR) and Chad to support efforts to contain the spread of cholera.

The European Union (EU) Delegation to Nigeria and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) announced the funding on Monday, saying it would support urgent interventions to prevent further transmission, improve access to treatment and strengthen disease surveillance and community response systems.

Nigeria will receive the largest portion of the funding, with €1.5 million allocated to intensify the country’s response to the outbreak.

According to the EU, the funding will support the deployment of additional response teams and the provision of essential supplies, including water points and household water, particularly in communities with limited access to safe drinking water.

The intervention will also strengthen epidemiological surveillance in hard-to-reach areas, improve cholera case management and expand risk communication and community sensitisation campaigns to promote preventive measures.

The latest funding comes amid growing concern over the spread of cholera across Africa.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) reported that more than 61,000 cholera cases were recorded in the African region during the first five months of 2026.

Cholera is mainly transmitted through contaminated food and water and can spread rapidly in communities where access to safe drinking water, sanitation and healthcare is poor.

Under the EU emergency package, Cameroon will receive €100,000 to support outbreak containment and treatment of infected patients.

The funding will provide additional personnel for humanitarian partners working in affected communities, as well as essential medicines, additional cholera treatment units and oral rehydration points in villages severely affected by the outbreak.

The Central African Republic will receive €500,000 to expand cholera case management and vaccination programmes, alongside water, sanitation and hygiene interventions.

The funding will also support risk communication and community engagement, improve disease surveillance and case detection, and promote dignified and safe burial practices.

In Chad, €200,000 will be provided to help break the chain of cholera transmission by improving access to water, sanitation and hygiene facilities.

The intervention will also strengthen community participation in disease surveillance and case management.

The European Commission said the assistance was aimed at addressing both immediate health needs and some of the underlying factors driving cholera transmission, particularly inadequate access to clean water and sanitation.

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European Commissioner for Preparedness and Crisis Management, Hadja Lahbib, said cholera remained a serious threat despite being preventable and treatable.

She said the disease could continue to claim lives in communities without access to safe water and adequate healthcare, stressing the need for rapid humanitarian action during outbreaks.

Lahbib said Europe would continue supporting affected populations at a time when humanitarian needs were rising and available resources were increasingly stretched.

The EU said the latest intervention would complement ongoing national and humanitarian responses in the four countries, with emphasis on containing transmission, improving access to essential healthcare and strengthening community preparedness against further outbreaks.