At least 12 people have died of cholera in Ogun State, Nigeria, in the past month, the state government has confirmed.

The outbreak began in Ijebu North Local Government Area on September 17 and has since spread to Abeokuta North and Abeokuta South council areas.

Commissioner for Health, Dr. Tomi Coker, said that 236 cases of cholera have been recorded so far, with 12 fatalities.

“This is slightly high for a state like ours because we are educated. And from what we found out that’s actually promoting the cholera outbreak is the fact that there’s high level of open defecation in the state.

“It started in Ijebu North Local Government where we have 217 cases, but now we have more reports. We have some from Abeokuta North last week. We have two reports from Abeokuta South.

“It is unfortunate that our people still engage in open defecation, unaware that fecal materials enter shallow wells, which many of them use as water sources. For instance, in Ijebu-North Local Government, we found 52 shallow wells and microbiological testing revealed that 75 percent of these wells had evidence of fecal contamination with coliform bacteria.

“We will work with our colleagues in the Environment Ministry to ensure sanitation, promote the use of appropriate sanitary facilities in homes, and construct sanitary wells. These wells should be well-built and less likely to be contaminated by fecal material, especially during the period of incessant rainfall and flooding, which washes fecal material into our water sources,” she said.

Cholera is a bacterial infection that can cause severe diarrhea and dehydration. It is most common in areas with poor sanitation and hygiene.

Symptoms of cholera include diarrhea, vomiting, and abdominal cramps. In severe cases, cholera can lead to death.