DAR ES SALAAM, Nov. 4 -- At least five people were killed by cholera, and 500 others contracted the disease in the Ikungi district of the Singida region, central Tanzania, between July and October, an official said Monday.

Emmanuel Kikoti, the acting medical officer of the Ikungi district, mentioned the most impacted villages, including Kaugeri, Mduguyu, and Ufana.

Kikoti said some of the 500 people who contracted the disease were admitted to isolated health centers and discharged, with a few others still being treated. He said the Ikungi district authorities suspended fisheries activities in Mgungira dam after it was established that most of the victims contracted the disease while fishing.

Ally Juma Mwanga, chairperson of the Ikungi district council, said the main cause of the outbreak of cholera was the lack of toilets in the area's communities.

According to official reports, Tanzania is currently facing its most severe cholera outbreak in almost 40 years. Thirteen regions have been affected since early January.

The World Health Organization says cholera is an acute diarrhoeal infection caused by ingesting food or water contaminated with the bacterium Vibrio cholerae. Cholera remains a global threat to public health and an indicator of inequity and lack of social development.

  - Xinhua