Borno Cholera Outbreak Worsens as Over 35,000 Cases and Nearly 200 Deaths Reported

Healthcare facilities across Nigeria’s Borno State are facing increasing pressure as a rapidly spreading cholera outbreak continues to affect communities, with more than 35,500 suspected cases and 198 deaths recorded since the disease emerged in May, according to the state Ministry of Health.

The outbreak, first reported on May 1, 2026, has expanded across several parts of the state, with health authorities and humanitarian organisations linking the surge to overcrowded settlements, poor sanitation conditions, inadequate waste disposal systems and limited access to clean drinking water.

Among those affected is 13-year-old Muhammad Usman, who was transported by ambulance to a Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF)-supported Cholera Treatment Centre in Maiduguri after developing severe symptoms.

His mother, Hadiza Ali, said her son’s condition deteriorated quickly after he began experiencing vomiting, severe diarrhoea and abdominal pain before eventually losing consciousness.

“We realised it could be cholera,” she said.

The account was contained in a statement signed by Abdulkareem Yakubu, Field Communication Officer (Press) for Médecins Sans Frontières | Doctors Without Borders (MSF), and made available to journalists.

MSF said it has expanded its emergency response in partnership with the Borno State Ministry of Health and other humanitarian groups to meet the growing demand for medical care.

The organisation currently supports two Cholera Treatment Centres, five Cholera Treatment Units and 17 Oral Rehydration Points across the state, providing care closer to communities affected by the outbreak.

According to MSF, more than 24,000 suspected cholera patients had received treatment through its supported facilities as of July 12. More than a quarter of those patients arrived with severe symptoms requiring urgent and intensive medical attention.

Bienfait Tombola, MSF’s Project Medical Coordinator in Maiduguri, said the response has expanded significantly but warned that the spread of the disease is continuing at a faster pace than containment efforts.

“We have significantly expanded our response over the past two months, but transmission is still spreading faster than efforts to contain it, mainly due to a lack of access to clean water, sanitation and healthcare,” Tombola said.

Health specialists explained that cholera is a severe bacterial infection caused by consuming food or water contaminated with the bacterium Vibrio cholerae. The disease can trigger intense watery diarrhoea, rapid dehydration and death within hours if treatment is delayed.

MSF said that although many residents are aware of the outbreak, knowledge about how cholera is transmitted remains insufficient in some affected communities.

Kyari Ali, a 65-year-old patient receiving treatment at a cholera centre, said several people in his family and neighbourhood had also fallen ill.

“Many people in my family and community have suspected cholera. I even have relatives who are also here in the treatment centre. I don’t know how I got the disease, and I don’t know how cholera spreads,” he said.

To reduce transmission, MSF has increased community awareness campaigns, trained healthcare workers, improved infection prevention practices and supported water chlorination efforts at key water collection points.

The organisation also supported an oral cholera vaccination campaign carried out by health authorities in early July, which reached more than 2.6 million people across Borno State.

Despite these measures, MSF warned that many communities, particularly those living in informal settlements, continue to face severe shortages of safe water, sanitation facilities and healthcare services, creating conditions that allow the outbreak to persist.

The health crisis has also extended beyond Borno State, with neighbouring Plateau State reporting 102 suspected cholera cases as of July 12.

MSF has called for urgent action to expand access to clean water, sanitation facilities, disease monitoring, timely medical treatment and vaccination programmes to slow the spread of cholera and prevent additional deaths.

The organisation stressed that controlling the outbreak will require sustained collaboration between government authorities, humanitarian agencies and local communities, alongside long-term improvements in public health infrastructure.