Ethiopia declared a malaria outbreak in the Oromia regional state, with health officials on Saturday reporting that at least 36 people died in the last two months in the conflict-ridden West Wollega zone’s Begi and Kondala districts.
Lata Banti, the head of the Begi district health care facility, confirmed the death of 36 people as the mosquito-borne parasitic infection continues to spread and urged for immediate medical supplies to save lives, local media reported.
The disease has been affecting people in 16 Oromia zones, with an increase of 168% this year compared to the previous year, the local media, citing Jawar Qasim, the head of the Oromia health department.
Faayo Abdii, a local health official in the region, told Anadolu by phone that there are shortages of medicines and oxygen as the disease has spread in many areas of the conflict-hit districts of Begi and Kondala in the Oromia regional state, where the majority of deaths have been reported.
The official did not provide an exact number of deaths or those affected by malaria in the two districts, but he did request assistance to deal with the emergency health situation.
The malaria outbreak occurred at a time when nearly all 42 existing health facilities in Begi, which has a population of over 100,000 people, have been looted or damaged, and patients with life-threatening medical conditions are unable to receive urgent care because health care centers are no longer operational, according to local media reports.