Kinshasa, DRC
A cholera outbreak has claimed 11 lives and infected more than 70 inmates in a prison in western Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), a country with overcrowded and dilapidated prison facilities, the Ministry of Justice announced on Monday.
“A cholera outbreak has been confirmed since March 27 at the Mbanza-Ngungu Central Prison,” located in the province of Kongo Central (west), about 150 km from the capital Kinshasa, Congolese Justice Minister Guillaume Ngefa said in a statement.
“To date, 11 inmates have unfortunately succumbed to the disease, while 74 cases of infection have been recorded among a prison population of approximately 800 inmates,” he stated.
According to him, the “rate of spread is particularly concerning.”
In the DRC, most prisons date back to the colonial era. Many inmates sleep on the floor, lack access to clean drinking water, and have limited access to healthcare.
Overcrowding accelerates the spread of diseases, particularly cholera, tuberculosis, and malaria.
“Medical teams have been deployed” to the Mbanza-Ngungu prison “to ensure continuous care for the sick, as well as preventive measures, including vaccination,” the Minister of Justice assured.
