Cholera is spreading fast, yet it can be stopped. Why haven’t we consigned it to history? | Hakainde Hichilema and Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus

Vaccine production must be expanded to combat this ancient disease, especially in Africa. But a lack of political will is holding us back

Hakainde Hichilema is president of Zambia. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus is director general of the World Health Organization

The last outbreak of cholera in Britain was in 1866; in the United States there has not been an outbreak since 1911.

And yet today people are sick with this ancient disease in 32 countries, with more than 6,800 deaths reported so far this year –already exceeding all of last year’s toll of 6,000 deaths, which was itself a 50% increase on 2023.

The most severe outbreaks are in Africa, where conflict is accelerating the spread and hampering control efforts in some countries. Cholera is the definitive disease of deprivation. It persists not for lack of science or solutions, but because leaders have failed to act with the urgency and commitment the crisis demands.