A four-day Oral Cholera Vaccination (OCV) campaign that started last week in the Greater Accra Region ended on February 17 amid the continued spread of the disease in other parts of the country. 

In an interview with GhanaFact, Dr. Kwame Amponsa-Achiano, a Public Health Physician and physician epidemiologist at the Ghana Health Service (GHS) said while the campaign formally ended on February 17, 2024, “a few are doing mop ups today.”

The Ministry of Health (MOH), the GHS, and the World Health Organization (WHO) rolled out the campaign on February 14, 2025.

The Minister for Health, Hon. Kwabena Mintah Akandoh, launched the campaign at the Mamprobi Hospital in Accra in the presence of major stakeholders when he received the first dose of the vaccine.

The beneficiary districts of the campaign included Ashiedu Keteke, Ablekuma South, and Okaikoi South districts, where health workers and volunteers administered the vaccine free of charge to individuals aged one year and above, excluding pregnant women.

Ghana declares cholera outbreak

On October 14, 2024, the GHS announced a cholera outbreak with nine (9) cases from the Greater Accra Region. As at the end of January 2025, the cholera death toll stood at 43 with a total of 480 infections.

The disease has since spread to the Central Region, where the minister recently visited following recorded cases in Winneba and Agona Swedru.

At the launch of the OCV campaign, the minister appealed to the public to strictly adhere to hygiene practices and maintain clean surroundings, emphasizing the need for presenting early at health facilities to report symptoms, while dispelling rumors about the efficacy of the vaccines.

The minister was accompanied by the Director-General of GHS, Prof. Samuel Kaba Akoriyea, and WHO Country Director, Dr. Frank Lule, who reaffirmed their commitment to the outbreak’s response and assured the public of its preparedness to contain the outbreak.

What is cholera?

MOH defines it as “a diarrhoeal disease caused by a germ found mostly in faeces. It spreads when a person drinks water or eats food that is contaminated with the cholera germ.”

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), cholera causes an estimated 3 to 5 million cases and 100,000 to 120,000 deaths every year. The short incubation period (12 hours to 5 days) enhances the potentially explosive pattern of the outbreaks.

By GhanaFact newsroom