from ROSY SADOU in Yaoundé, Cameroon
Cameroon Bureau
YAOUNDÉ, (CAJ News) – THE number of people affected by the floods in the Far North region of Cameroon continues to increase.
No less than 30 people have died since the crisis began in July.
Heavy rains, causing flooding in several localities in the Far North Cameroon has severely affected some 365 060 people (67 323 households).
Among these are an estimated 124 120 children aged under five.
Some 5 278 heads of livestock were lost, and 82 509 hectares of agricultural land destroyed.
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reports that the rains also continue to severely impede access to education in the central African nation.
Some 262 schools were destroyed, damaged or cut off by the floods, affecting 103 906 students and 1 418 teachers in the Mayo-Danay and Logone-et-Chari divisions.
Additionally, 65 health facilities across 15 out of the 19 health districts have been impacted by the floods.
An OCHA spokesperson warned that floods also heightened the risk of cholera and other waterborne diseases, as well as malaria.
“Without medical care, these diseases can all be fatal for children and increase the risk of malnutrition.”
Over 40 per cent of boreholes, the primary source of drinking water, are either inaccessible, submerged, or damaged. Latrines are flooded and/or inaccessible to households.
The rising river levels are causing concerns about a worsening situation in the coming days and weeks.
Latest estimates suggest that 463 563 people will be affected by the floods in the Far North this year.
The government of President Paul Biya has committed CFA 1,9 billion (US$3,1 million) to support flood victims.
– CAJ News