Cholera outbreak in Gihanga : twenty cases reported, three deaths, health authorities on alert

SOS Médias Burundi

Mpanda, October 15, 2025 – For nearly a month, the Gihanga area, in the district of Mpanda in Bujumbura province in western Burundi, has been facing a cholera epidemic that is worrying the population. This outbreak comes after Burundi declared a national cholera epidemic on January 1, 2023, which, more than two and a half years later, remains active. Twenty people have been hospitalized at Saint-Augustin Hospital in Gihanga, three of whom have succumbed to the disease. Health authorities assure that the situation remains under control, despite persistent challenges related to access to drinking water.

Dr. Joëlle Bigirimana, chief medical officer of the Gihanga health district, reports that cases continue to appear in certain villages of Mpanda district, particularly in Busongo, Murira, and Gihanga.

“We are doing everything possible to contain the spread of the disease. Medical teams are mobilized and medications are available,” she reassures.

Access to drinking water, the main cause of the outbreak

According to health authorities, the lack of clean water remains the main cause of this epidemic. In several localities, residents are drinking water from rivers and marshes, which is often contaminated by agricultural chemicals.

To slow the spread, homes that have sheltered patients have been disinfected. The Burundi Red Crescent, in collaboration with community health workers, is continuing disinfection and awareness-raising operations in the affected areas.

“We intervene every day in high-risk areas to spray and sanitize the surrounding areas,” explains a Red Crescent volunteer we met on site.

Additional cases in Bujumbura and Burunga provinces

The epidemic is not limited to Gihanga. The districts of Cibitoke and Bukinanyana, as well as certain neighborhoods in the city of Bujumbura, are also affected. In the south, Burunga province, particularly the districts of Rumonge, is recording additional cases. Since January 2025, more than 1,600 cases have been reported in these different areas, including at least 13 deaths in the districts of Cibitoke and Bukinanyana.

Call for vigilance and hygiene measures

Local populations, already affected by the disease, are asking the government to speed up the distribution of drinking water.

“We’re getting sick because we drink dirty water.” “If we were given clean water, cholera would disappear,” confided a Murira resident.

While waiting for lasting solutions, health authorities are calling for vigilance, adherence to hygiene rules, and the consumption of treated water. The situation remains particularly worrying in the Gihanga area, in the district of Mpanda, in Bujumbura province in western Burundi.