22 killed as Cholera outbreak infects 1200 people in DR Congo. Mpox continues to take toll on Kinshasa

The Democratic Republic of Congo is facing a new surge in cholera and monkeypox disease outbreaks in the backdrop of ongoing clashes between the Kinshasa Government and rebel groups led by March 23 troops.

Reports from DR Congo reveal that more than 1,200 new suspected cases of Cholera as well as 22 deaths arising from the infections have been recorded in the Eastern African country within just a week.

According to an official communique issued from Kinshasa by the DR Congo Minister of Health, Roger Kamba during the country’s Council of Ministers’ Meeting, a total of 1,198 suspected cases of cholera have been confirmed there.

The DRC Health Minister also reported that more than 22 people have so far died from Cholera and these deaths have been documented over the past week.

The case fatality rate for the epidemic in DR Congo, according to officials, now stands at an alarming 1.8 percent and counting. Considering the huge size of the country and equally large population this percentage should translate into a significant number.

At the same time, the country is also recording a significant increase in cases of Monkeypox, a disease also known as Mpox and which has been wreaking havoc in the country since 2024

The number of Mpox cases has risen from 1,453 to 2,044 in one week resulting in an increase of more than 40 percent, a figure which is also frightening.

Although more than 521,000 people in the Democratic Republic of Congo have already been vaccinated, the disease continues to spread in several provinces.

These epidemics highlight the Congolese health system’s failures in the sanitation system, particularly in the rural and peri-urban areas, with the ongoing war being another contributing factor.

On the ground, health workers condemn the lack of logistical resources, insufficient coordination, and limited communication, which complicates the fight against misinformation and crippling efforts of raising public awareness.