Global cholera deaths passed 3,018 in the first nine months of 2026, alongside nearly 309,000 reported cases of cholera or acute watery diarrhea across 28 countries, according to data from the World Health Organization.
Nearly nine out of ten of those deaths occurred in Africa. While overall mortality has decreased compared to the same period in 2025, the bacterial infection continues to spread despite being easily treatable.
The disease is caused by the bacterium Vibrio cholerae, which spreads primarily through contaminated water and food. Incubation takes between 12 hours and five days, leading to severe diarrhea, vomiting, and life-threatening dehydration that can prove fatal within hours.
Simple and inexpensive treatments, including oral rehydration solutions, can cure the vast majority of cases. Severe infections require intravenous fluids and sometimes antibiotics, but armed conflict, poverty, and displacement obstruct patient access to care in remote areas.
DRC and regional countries suffer high death tolls
The Democratic Republic of the Congo remains the hardest-hit nation, recording 1,564 deaths according to WHO data. Nigeria follows with 467 deaths, Sudan with 264, Angola with 132, and Cameroon with 90.
These figures may be underestimated because many patients in isolated or conflict-torn regions never reach health surveillance systems. In the North-Kivu province of the DRC, the Katoyi health zone recorded nearly 400 cases and multiple deaths since mid-September.
To combat the spreading outbreak, Kinshasa and Brazzaville launched a joint cross-border vaccination campaign on November 3, aiming to immunize two million people along the Congo River. Professor Didier Bompangué, the WHO cholera lead in the DRC, told RFI that vaccinating both banks of the river is essential because acting on a single side is insufficient.
“When vaccinating along the river, acting on only one bank is not enough,” said Didier Bompangué, WHO cholera lead in the DRC.
Climate disasters and El Niño worsen water safety
Climatic disasters worsen the crisis, as floods contaminate water supplies while droughts force vulnerable populations to drink unsafe water. The ongoing El Niño climate phenomenon could further exacerbate conditions by driving both excess rainfall and water scarcity.
Heavy seasonal rains and rising water levels complicated deployment in the DRC, where health teams rely on canoes and motorized boats to reach isolated river islets. A doctor from the WHO told franceinfo that the disease can kill in hours despite being cheap and easy to treat.
“The disease can kill in a matter of hours, even though it is easy and inexpensive to treat with existing medicines,” said a doctor from the WHO.
The path toward 2030 elimination
The WHO and Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, maintain their goal of reducing cholera deaths by 90% and eliminating the disease as a public health threat in at least 20 countries by 2030. The International Coordinating Group on vaccine provision approved 71 million doses for international distribution in 2025 with financial support from Gavi, according to franceinfo.
The world continues to experience its seventh cholera pandemic, which began in South Asia in 1961.
Frequently asked questions about the cholera outbreak
Why is mortality lower in 2026 than in 2025?
Preliminary data for the first nine months of 2026 show a decrease in deaths compared to 2025, which was the deadliest year for cholera since 1999 with nearly 7,900 fatalities, according to franceinfo.
How does the El Niño phenomenon affect cholera transmission?
According to franceinfo, El Niño exacerbates cholera outbreaks by driving extreme weather patterns that involve both excess water and severe droughts. Floods contaminate drinking water reserves, while droughts force populations to consume unsafe water from unregulated sources.
What specific steps are health authorities taking on the Congo River?
Health workers are utilizing motorized boats, canoes, and community relays to immunize two million people in western DRC and across the border in Congo-Brazzaville. According to RFI, the transboundary campaign began on November 3 in the Équateur province before expanding to Mai-Ndombe and Kinshasa.
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