Disease

Meningitis - Togo

On 15 February 2023, an outbreak of meningitis was officially declared by the Ministry of Health of Togo, in Oti South district of Savana region in the northern part of the country. The epidemic threshold has been crossed in week 6 (ending 12 February), with a cumulative of 72 suspected cases and seven deaths.

Diphtheria - Nigeria

In a follow-up on the diphtheria outbreak in Nigeria, between week 19 (mid-May) of 2022 and week 7 (mid-February) of 2023, 724 suspected cases of diphtheria were reported from 20 states in Nigeria. A total of 89 deaths were recorded among all suspected cases, representing a case fatality rate of 12.3%. Of suspected cases, 313 cases were confirmed.

Bird Flu Surge

The avian influenza virus that has killed untold numbers of wild birds and forced the culling of hundreds of millions of farmed poultry during the past three years has become so pervasive and has spread so far around the world that it is now a permanent problem. Experts say farmers must protect their poultry year-round instead of just during the migration seasons of wild birds to prevent further food supply shortages. Wild birds are the main spreaders of the virus responsible for bird flu as their infected droppings litter the landscape and are carried into poultry farms, or sometimes fall directly onto them.