WHO releases $1.5 million to combat diphtheria in Cox’s Bazar

20, Dec 2017 | CJP Team

The World Health Organization (WHO) has released $1.5 million from its Contingency Fund for Emergencies to be put towards expanding health operations in Bangladesh’s Cox Bazar, which is currently home to several hundred thousand Rohingya refugees. This money will be used to combat the outbreak of diphtheria among these refugees. There have already been more than 1,500 suspected cases, with 21 deaths. In the next six months, the funds will be used for immunisation, better laboratory capacity, and backing community engagement initiatives, among other operations, according to the WHO. In the past week, WHO has dispatched more experts, and also supplied 1,345 vials of lifesaving diphtheria anti-toxins and 300,000 doses of antibiotics.