May 6, 2025
By: Getahun Tsegaye
Staff Reporter
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia – The intertwined crises of ongoing armed conflict and a spreading cholera outbreak are taking a devastating toll on Ethiopia’s Amhara region. Over the past four months, the Amhara Public Health Institute reports that 15 lives have been lost to the waterborne disease, with over 2,131 people infected.
Sefi Derb, a specialist in disease and health emergency response at the region’s Public Health Institute, painted a stark picture in an interview with Ethio FM. “More than 2,130 people have fallen ill during this period,” she stated, highlighting how cholera continues its relentless march across areas already ravaged by months of intense fighting between regional militia groups and the federal government’s military forces. The most severely affected districts include Qwara in West Gondar, Bahir Dar Zuria in North Gojjam, Bure in West Gojjam, and Jawie in the Awi Zone, where access to vital health services has been drastically reduced or has completely collapsed.
The conflict, which sharply escalated in mid-2023 following rising tensions over the disarmament of regional security forces, has had a catastrophic impact on Amhara’s already fragile health system. Eyewitness accounts detail hospitals being looted or destroyed, medical personnel forced to flee their posts, and crucial supply chains breaking down. The Ethiopian Human Rights Commission has previously documented disturbing instances of health facilities being directly targeted during the intense fighting.
Health workers on the ground paint an increasingly dire picture. “There are areas we can’t even reach to properly assess the extent of the outbreak, let alone provide treatment to those who are sick,” shared Sister Sefi Derbe conveying the overwhelming challenges. “We are stretched beyond our limits and desperately lack the resources we need.”
“We feel like we’re fighting a war on two fronts – one against bullets and the other against bacteria,” a public health officer in Bahir Dar revealed to Borkena on condition of anonymity, emphasizing the crippling effect of the conflict on the region’s ability to respond to the health crisis. According to him, the ongoing fighting is actively obstructing the delivery of already scarce medical supplies to the communities that desperately need them. “We live with constant uncertainty, never knowing when or how the next round of gunfire will erupt between the federal security forces and the Fano militia. We are caught in the crossfire, and our lives are constantly at risk just trying to do our jobs,” he added, his words highlighting the perilous conditions under which healthcare workers are operating.
Dr. Osman, a healthcare provider based in South Gondar, further elaborated to Borkena on the devastating impact of the conflict on access to clean water. “The water sources in the areas where the cholera outbreak has taken hold are heavily contaminated, making it incredibly difficult to contain the disease,” he explained. He also stressed that the conflict has severely hampered the ability of healthcare workers to reach affected communities and deliver essential services. “We have made urgent appeals to both the regional and federal governments for assistance in containing this outbreak,” he stated, underscoring the desperate need for intervention.
The spread of cholera in Amhara is not an isolated tragedy. The disease has now reached a staggering 31 districts within the region, with the critical lack of clean water and adequate sanitation being identified as the primary drivers fueling its expansion. Health experts on the ground warn that in areas like Jawie District, where the first cases were reported in early April, the acute scarcity of clean water and the severely compromised hygiene infrastructure are rapidly worsening the crisis.
“It’s not just about a shortage of medicine,” explained Menber Girma, head of the Jawie District Health Office.”People don’t even have basic necessities like soap. They are being forced to drink from rivers that we know are contaminated.”
According to health officials, the movement of people fleeing the intense conflict zones – such as those traveling from the Andasa area near Bahir Dar to relative safety in Jawie – is inadvertently accelerating the geographical spread of the disease. While mobile health teams and vaccination drives have been deployed in a desperate attempt to curb the outbreak, persistent insecurity and significant logistical bottlenecks continue to severely limit their access to those most in need.
The unfolding crisis in Amhara sadly mirrors broader national trends. Across Ethiopia, cholera has now spread to a concerning 60 districts, resulting in over 4,900 reported cases and 90 tragic deaths since July 2023, according to data from the International Medical Corps. In the Gambella region alone, a staggering 1,320 cases and 29 deaths were reported by early March 2025, prompting emergency vaccination campaigns targeting over a million vulnerable individuals.
At the national level, Ethiopia’s Health Minister Dr. Mekdes Daba emphasized the critical importance of a unified and coordinated response during a cholera vaccination campaign launch in late March, stating unequivocally, “A comprehensive national strategy is in place to prevent and control both communicable and non-communicable diseases.”
Meanwhile, Dr. Mesay Hailu, Director of the Ethiopian Public Health Institute, issued a stark warning about the potential for the approaching rainy season to further complicate containment efforts, stressing, “We are intensifying surveillance in close collaboration with regional governments and our partners.”
Yet, for many on the ground in Amhara, the official response feels woefully inadequate and tragically delayed. “People are dying from diseases that are entirely preventable simply because we cannot reach them,” a local health worker confided, requesting anonymity for their own safety. “Cholera is mercilessly claiming the lives of the poorest and most vulnerable, while the ongoing war continues to tear apart the very fabric of our communities.”
With growing alarm over the devastating humanitarian and public health consequences of the conflict, local and international organizations are urgently calling for a significantly scaled-up intervention – not only to aggressively combat the escalating cholera outbreak but also to urgently stabilize the rapidly collapsing healthcare infrastructure that the people of Amhara so desperately need.
Despite multiple attempts, we have been unable to obtain a response from the Amhara Health Bureau.
__