In South-Central Niger, Amadou Elh Mamoudou, 35, survived a cholera outbreak in his village of Maradi. “What I experienced with this disease is terrible. I saw death at close range,” he said.
After recovering, he began working with health officials in his district to urge others to get vaccinated, leading his district to reach 98% vaccination coverage.
According to the CDC, cholera is an acute, diarrheal illness caused by infection of the intestine with the toxigenic bacterium Vibrio cholerae serogroup O1 or O139. Contaminated drinking water, poor sanitation and inadequate hygiene are the highest risks for cholera.
