Zimbabwe government declares end to latest cholera outbreak

FILE - Cholera patients are rehydrated with salt and sugar solution at Kuwadzana Polyclinic in Harare, Zimbabwe, Nov. 24, 2023. FILE - Dr. Douglas Mombeshora, Zimbabwe’s health minister, seen in this January 2024 photo in Harare, said the interventions that his government has taken have yielded results and ended the cholera outbreak. (Columbus Mavhunga/VOA) Dr. Desta Tiruneh, the World Health Organization representative for Zimbabwe, told VOA that eradication of the cholera outbreak means the country can now concentrate on other health concerns. (Columbus Mavhunga/VOA) A man walks past sewage that had been in the street for days in Harare's Mbare township on Aug. 12, 2024. (Columbus Mavhunga/VOA)

Zimbabwean authorities recently declared the end of a cholera outbreak which lasted nearly 18 months, but public health experts say the conditions which caused the waterborne disease still exist and need urgent attention.