In an interview with the Al-Hurra channel, he added: “In these areas, we will conduct a comprehensive survey so that approximately 100-200 teams will walk neighborhoods and visit beta homes at home and give the vaccine to everyone but a those under the age of one year “.
He continued: “The second phase of administering the vaccine to the rest of the citizens and the displaced is awaiting the arrival of approximately 1.5 million additional vaccines to begin within a few weeks or less.”
He stressed that “the cholera vaccine will not be mandatory, but we will intensify our campaigns in the field to explain and encourage the importance of the vaccine”.
He stressed that “mandatory administration of the vaccine can cause a negative reaction”.
He explained: “The vaccine response rate will be, according to our studies, around 80% to 85%.”
He stressed that “our goal is to reach about 70% of the vaccinated community, because the percentage of twenty and thirty percent will be weak and will not achieve what is required of them”.
He explained: “Those who receive the vaccine will be protected against cholera after five or seven days.”
Al-Abyad confirmed that “the cholera at this stage started in Syria before starting in Lebanon”.
He stressed that “the first case of cholera was discovered by a Syrian displaced person returning from Syria, and there is no doubt that the density in the camps, in addition to the conditions of absence of infrastructure in the camps, negatively, as well as the deterioration of infrastructure external to the fields in different areas of Lebanon and to the mixing of waste water with those of use.
He added: “In the camps for displaced persons, sewers and water wells are distributed there by the United Nations. When these holes were not well drained, some kind of flooding occurred in some camps, and this allowed us to see a additional number of victims in the areas where the displaced people were “.
Regarding the responsibility to address this issue within the camps, Al-Abyadh said: “This issue is being handled by UNHCR, in cooperation with its partners.”
He pointed out that “In an earlier period, they did a bad thing when they reduced the number of services provided and provided the person with 30 liters of sterile water, they reduced it to 7 liters and there was a delay in cleaning the holes. health and all this has exacerbated the problem “.
He continued: “But they withdrew this decision and returned to deliver 30 or 35 liters of water, and it is also known that a person generally needs between 70 and 100 liters per day to drink and consume, and therefore the conditions in which the life of the displaced contributes to the spread of diseases “.
And he stressed that “the need for international organizations to assume their responsibilities in this field towards the displaced”.
The Minister of Health expressed the questions of some about the fate of international aid that has reached Lebanon in recent years, and revealed “the notes of the donor countries that have invested heavily in Lebanon and infrastructure, and are wondering today where these are the investments and where are the results “.
He said: “The state has one last chance today and we are faced with a test. Donor countries will provide money. Either they will see the results on the ground, or those countries will no longer help afterwards, and” they will manage your situation. “
He added: “We have declared a state of emergency to tackle cholera, not from today, but from 3 weeks ago, because it not only affects health, but also many sectors such as agriculture, export of agricultural products, catering. , tourism, the economy and others “.
He stressed that “its impact has also reached sport and that some judo teams have apologized for coming to Lebanon to participate in a sporting event for fear of cholera”.
And he stressed: “The importance of acting quickly to reduce the epidemic so that it does not get out of control, and therefore the results will be catastrophic”.
And he stressed, “the need to address the causes, because if we control the epidemic today, we could see new epidemics tomorrow”.
