Ending cholera as a public health threat by 2030 is within reach, since every cholera death can be prevented with existing tools, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Tuesday, according to a press release issued through UN News on 10 November 2026. Dr. Lorenzo Pezzoli, WHO lead for epidemic-prone bacterial diseases, briefed journalists in Geneva on the latest figures. He reported that 2025 was the deadliest year for cholera since 1999, with almost 7,900 deaths. Most fatalities occurred at the community level before patients could reach healthcare. The update came alongside briefings on Haiti’s worsening crisis and a rescheduled US human rights review.
Cholera remains closely tied to conflict, overcrowding and limited access to safe water and sanitation. In the first nine months of 2026, fatalities decreased, yet more than 3,000 people have still died from the preventable and treatable disease. Nearly nine in ten of those deaths occurred in Africa. Most current cases are being reported in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Yemen, Zambia, Nigeria, Somalia and Djibouti. WHO has already distributed 71 million doses of cholera vaccine.
“Where there is clean water, basic sanitation and a nearby health centre, patients can recover,” Dr. Pezzoli said.
However, in crowded camps or villages cut off by conflict, cholera can turn deadly within hours. He warned that El Niño could worsen matters, since both too much and too little water fuel the disease. Sufficient clean water and sanitation facilities would end cholera for good, he added, but not where conflict is raging. The WHO reiterated that the tools to eliminate the disease already exist.
In Haiti, armed violence continues to displace people in the West Department, UN Deputy Spokesperson Farhan Haq told journalists in New York on Tuesday. Since late October, attacks in Arcahaie and Cabaret have displaced more than 5,900 people, according to the International Organization for Migration (IOM), with about 70 percent staying with host families. Nearly six million people face high levels of acute food insecurity, including almost 1.9 million at emergency levels. UNICEF estimates that more than 250,000 children aged six to 59 months will suffer from acute malnutrition between June 2026 and May 2027, including nearly 94,000 severe cases. The $880 million humanitarian plan for Haiti has received only $424 million.
Separately, the UN Human Rights Council expressed regret over the “continued non-cooperation” of the United States with the universal periodic review (UPR) mechanism. The US declined to take part for a second time, after the review had initially been scheduled for 7 November 2025 and then moved to Tuesday. Under the UPR, every Member State appears before its peers in Geneva roughly once every four and a half years. The council called on the US to resume cooperation and rescheduled the review for 18 to 29 January 2027. Other States under review during the current session include Suriname, Greece, Hungary, Thailand and Ireland.