Zamfara state sits at the heart of a crisis that keeps compounding itself. Already one of the states hardest hit by the wave of insecurity that has swept across north-western Nigeria over the past decade, its communities are now facing another consequence of that instability: recurring cholera outbreaks that keep coming back.
When armed conflict displaces families and disrupts basic infrastructure, clean water and proper sanitation are usually the first things to go. That is the condition many Zamfara residents are living in, and cholera finds exactly that kind of environment to thrive.
The link between insecurity and public health is not new, but Zamfara is making it painfully visible. As long as the security situation remains unresolved, the cycle of outbreak, response, and outbreak again is unlikely to break anytime soon.
Originally published by Premium Times.