Ngaoundéré : Cholera alert activated

This is the content of a statement by the rapporteur of the health commission of the 2023 edition of the university games. The measures are already taken to counter the contagion.

Jean Besane Mangam

After the confirmed cases of the epidemic in some Health Districts
of Yaounde and given the participation of institutions
from the city of Yaounde in the University Games, the institution
of Dang which is hosting the Cop’s is already working to make these games, a competition
without cholera. According to Dr. Samuel Mbozo’o, Chief Medical Officer of the University of Ngaoundéré, his team will be on the ground to keep the competition
sites sanitized to limit the occurrence of cases. According
to him, measures are being taken to secure the various dormitories
where the athletes and even those of the coaches will be housed. “We had already provided
in our action plan many hand washing points. We are going to integrate education, awareness and communication of the participants,
the care staff but also all the food handlers,” he says.
What’s more, sanitation will not be the order of the day during the ten days of intense competition.
“The focus will be on hygiene, the availability of hand-washing facilities and encouraging
the consumption of properly
washed food and drinking water,” concludes the doctor. During the visit of the president of the local organising committee
of this 23rd edition of the Ngaoundéré 2023 University Games, on 18 April, the observation
was made that there is a lack of toilets for the more than 4,000 competitors and the more than 5,000 visits per day.
Rainy season
The host university has less than a week to provide the various sites with sufficient toilets for this biological need. While it is true that announcements have been made in this direction for years, it is far from being available
to students. The existing toilets are not only unsanitary, but are overgrown with bush. To avoid cases of cholera vibrio importation, checkpoints should also be installed at the entrances to the city of Ngaoundéré and especially at the main entrance of the University. The reinforcement
of the hygiene system is more than ever topical at the beginning of the rainy season in the water tower.