Nigeria is set to receive €1.5 million from a €2.3 million emergency humanitarian funding package approved by the European Union to tackle the ongoing cholera outbreak across parts of West and Central Africa.
The European Commission announced the funding on Monday, with support also allocated to Cameroon, the Central African Republic and Chad to strengthen outbreak response and prevent further transmission.
According to the World Health Organisation, more than 61,000 cholera cases were reported across the African region in the first five months of 2026, underscoring the scale of the public health emergency.
Of the total funding, €1.5 million will go to Nigeria to increase the number of emergency intervention teams and provide essential supplies, including cholera kits.
The funding will also support water, sanitation and hygiene measures, including the treatment of public water points and household water supplies.
The EU said the intervention would further strengthen epidemiological surveillance in hard-to-reach areas, improve case management and expand risk communication and community sensitisation efforts.
Cameroon will receive €100,000 to support outbreak containment and case management, including additional humanitarian personnel, essential medicines, cholera treatment units and oral rehydration points in the worst-affected villages.
The Central African Republic will receive €500,000 to scale up case management and vaccination, alongside water, sanitation and hygiene interventions.
The funding will also strengthen risk communication, community engagement, surveillance and case detection, while supporting dignified and safe burials.
In Chad, €200,000 will be used to help break the chain of cholera transmission by improving access to safe water, sanitation and hygiene services, as well as strengthening community-based surveillance and case management.
EU Commissioner for Preparedness and Crisis Management Hadja Lahbib said cholera remained a serious threat despite being both preventable and treatable.
“Cholera is preventable and treatable, but it still threatens lives when people lack safe water and healthcare,” Lahbib said.
She added that Europe would not “look away” as humanitarian needs increase while available resources continue to decline.
Boluwatife Enome
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