All set for Sadc Extraordinary Summit tomorrow

Oscar J Jeke

Heads of state and government are set to convene on Friday for a Sadc extraordinary summit on the preparedness and responses to the ongoing cholera pandemic.

The Sadc Extraordinary Summit of Heads of state will be presided over by the Angolan President and Sadc chair, Joao Manuel Goncalves, that will have a discussion on a report of the current outbreaks in member states.

The virtual meeting follows that of the Sadc Council of Ministries, which also convened in response to the outbreak.

In a statement on X, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Trade said that preparedness and responses to the cholera outbreak are on the agenda of the meeting.

“The meeting was convened in response to the cholera outbreak that is affecting many Sadc member states,” the Ministry said.

The cholera epidemic continues to torment countries in Southern Africa, including Zimbabwe, Malawi, Zambia and Mozambique.

About 188 000 cholera cases, including 3 000 cholera-related deaths, have been reported in eight countries in Southern Africa since January 2023.

According to ReliefWeb, Malawi has reported 59 000 cases, the highest in the region. Mozambique, Zambia and Zimbabwe reported between 10 000 and 50 000 cases, while Tanzania and South Africa reported less than 2 000.

In Zambia, a spike in cholera cases led to the delay in the opening of schools affecting approximately 4.3 million learners.