A cholera epidemic has killed more than 500 people in Zambia and forced the southern African country's authorities on Wednesday to postpone the start of the school year again.
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The start of the school year was originally scheduled for January 8th, but last week the government postponed it for the first time to January 29th. And on Wednesday he postponed it again to February 12 because of the rising number of cholera cases.
Education Minister Douglas Syakalima made the announcement at a press conference in the capital Lusaka, the epicenter of the outbreak. Cholera is an acute form of diarrhea that can kill within hours and is spread through contaminated water or food.
Health Minister Sylvia Masebo said the total death toll since October has risen to 518 deaths, including six in the last 24 hours.
In mid-January, Zambia received an initial batch of more than one million oral doses of cholera vaccines from the World Health Organization (WHO).