19 June 2017•Update: 19 June 2017
By Mohammed Amin
KHARTOUM
Watery diarrhea has killed 230 people in Sudan in less than one year, said Sudanese Health Minister Bahar Idriss Abu Garda late Sunday.
Speaking to Anadolu Agency, Abu Garda said the situation is now under control, saying that the cases of watery diarrhea have been decreasing in recent days.
"We have registered around 16,000 cases and the total deaths now stand at around 230 people since August 2016," he said.
"But we are confirming that the situation is under our full control and the spread of the disease is on a gradual decrease," he stressed.
The minister said 171 new cases were discovered on Sunday, including 40 in the capital Khartoum, going on to reassure the public that Sudanese authorities were exerting strenuous efforts to combat the disease.
Abu Garda, however, warned that the situation could be worsening in the coming rainy season in Sudan, vowing to take protective measures to contain any probable consequences of the rainy season.
Last week, the UN said some 15,000 cases of watery diarrhea were reported in Sudan in less than one year.
The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) also said that 279 deaths were reported from the disease in the country.
Contaminated drinking water is responsible for the spread of watery diarrhea which appears every now and then in many areas in Sudan.
