The King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Centre (KSrelief) and the World Health Organization (WHO) signed a joint implementation agreement to support cholera preparedness and response in the Lake Chad Basin, on the sidelines of the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly.
On the sidelines of the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, the program was signed on Monday by Adviser at the Royal Court and Supervisor General of KSrelief Dr. Abdullah Al Rabeeah and WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Covering Cameroon, Chad, Mali, Niger and Nigeria, the project combines water, sanitation and hygiene activities, including drilling wells and rehabilitating public latrines — with epidemiological surveillance and the provision of medicines and medical consumables.
It will also rehabilitate medical facilities and equip radiology, sterilization, operating theatre, emergency and intensive care units for children and adults.
More than 61,000 cholera cases were recorded in the African Region in the first five months of 2026. Nigeria accounts for the region’s largest outbreak, with over 50,000 cases and 338 deaths since January, while in Chad nearly two thirds of infections are among children under 15.
Across the Lake Chad Basin, 8.2 million people require humanitarian assistance and only 22 per cent of funding requirements had been met as of April 2026.
As of the end of August 2026, KSrelief had implemented 4,457 humanitarian and relief projects valued at USD 8.57 billion across 113 countries.
Tedros praised Saudi Arabia’s humanitarian and medical work through KSrelief, highlighting the center’s pivotal role in supporting healthcare systems and its swift response to health crises and emergencies in countries in need.
