Page 6 - aruba-today-20240819

A6 WORLD NEWS
Monday 19 august 2024
Cholera outbreak in Sudan has killed at least 22 people,

health minister says

By SAMY MAGDY their homes since fighting
Associated Press began, according to the
CAIRO (AP) — Sudan has International Organization
been stricken by a chol- for Migration. Over 2 million
era outbreak that has killed of those fled to neighboring
nearly two dozen people countries.
and sickened hundreds The fighting has been
more in recent weeks, marked by atrocities includ-
health authorities said Sun- ing mass rape and ethni-
day. The African nation has cally motivated killings that
been roiled by a 16-month amount to war crimes and
conflict and devastating crimes against humanity,
floods. according to the U.N. and
Health Minister Haitham international rights groups.
Mohamed Ibrahim said in Devastating seasonal
a statement that at least floods in recent weeks
22 people have died from A woman sorts through floodwaters near her damaged home near the city of Abu Hamdan in have compounded the
the disease, and that at Northern Sudan on Aug. 7, 2024. misery. Dozens of people
least 354 confirmed cases Associated Press have been killed and criti-
of cholera have been de- Cholera is a fast-develop- when simmering tensions their doors. cal infrastructure has been
tected across the county in ing, highly contagious infec- between the military and It has killed thousands of washed away in 12 of Su-
recent weeks. tion that causes diarrhea, a powerful paramilitary people and pushed many dan’s 18 provinces, ac-
Ibrahim didn’t give a time leading to severe dehy- group exploded into open into starvation, with fam- cording to local authorities.
frame for the deaths or the dration and possible death warfare across the country. ine already confirmed About 118,000 people have
tally since the start of the within hours when not treat- The conflict has turned the in a sprawling camp for been displaced due to the
year. The World Health Or- ed, according to WHO. It capital, Khartoum and oth- displaced people in the floods, according to the
ganization, however, said is transmitted through the er urban areas into battle- wrecked northern region of U.N. migration agency.
that 78 deaths were record- ingestion of contaminated fields, wrecking civilian in- Darfur. Cholera is not uncommon
ed from cholera this year food or water. frastructure and an already Sudan’s conflict has cre- in Sudan. A previous major
in Sudan as of July 28. The The cholera outbreak is battered health care sys- ated the world’s largest outbreak left at least 700
disease also sickened more the latest calamity for Su- tem. Without the basics, displacement crisis. More dead and sickened about
than 2,400 others between dan, which was plunged many hospitals and medi- than 10.7 million people 22,000 in less than two
Jan. 1 and July 28, it said. into chaos in April last year cal facilities have closed have been forced to flee months in 2017.q

The trash in Mali’s capital is piling up.

Donkey carts are coming to help

By BABA AHMED be deposited in a transfer Kanté, a deputy mayor. He
Associated Press site and then taken to a said residents aren’t willing
BAMAKO, Mali (AP) — landfill. But the city doesn’t to pay for waste disposal.
When handling the gar- have sites that meet re- Some residents agree and
bage of a city of over 3 mil- quired standards, said point out that there’s no
lion people and equipped Bamadou Sidibé, a waste penalty for simply toss-
with little more than a face management consultant. ing their garbage into the
mask and gloves, it helps “All the institutions that street.
to have a sense of humor. have to deal with the waste “Instead of hiring a gar-
Yacouba Diallo decided to problem are not playing bage collector who has
name the two donkeys that their part,” he said. to be paid, a lot of people
pull his cart after his cous- The World Bank in 2022 ap- wait until the rainy season
ins, Keita and Kanté. proved $250 million to help to throw their garbage into
Hauling garbage in Mali’s rehabilitate a landfill out- the running water. It costs
capital, Bamako, can be side Bamako to internation- less,” said one resident,
otherwise grim. The city Donkeys pull a cart to collect household waste at the al standards and build a Boureima Traoré.
more than doubled its Badalabougou garbage dump site in Bamako, Mali, on July 10, second one in the city. The Until solutions are put
population in recent years 2024. project has been set up by in place, the garbage
and struggles to manage Associated Press the government and the mounds in Bamako have
its waste. Piles of garbage He said he can make up to burdened, work long days World Bank and is due to attracted some residents
dominate some streets. $166 a month. That kind of and have little protection last until 2028, but no date who risk their health and
Residents are turning to money is attractive to youth from walking on broken has been given for the start safety searching through
donkey carts like Diallo’s for who come from Mali’s rural glass around dump sites. of construction. them for items to reuse or
trash pickup. The carts can areas seeking employment Amadou Doumbia with Local authorities acknowl- sell.
weave in and out of vehi- in the West African nation the SPANA nonprofit cam- edge the city has a waste It’s a common scene in
cle traffic and reach more with high unemployment. paigns for the donkeys to disposal problem. But they some African capitals and
places than trucks can, es- Some in Mali are con- be replaced with trucks. blame residents. one that can turn deadly:
pecially on bad roads. cerned about the don- But conditions are tough “Bamako is dirty because Earlier this month, a vast
In addition, “it requires less keys they use. Advocacy all around. Ideally, the gar- people don’t care about landfill in Uganda’s capital
investment than a truck,” groups allege that some bage collected from Ba- the environment or their collapsed, killing at least 30
Diallo said. of the animals are over- mako’s streets is meant to health,” asserted Adama people.q