A cholera vaccination campaign targeting over 144 000 South Sudanese in Renk a county which borders Sudan’s Blue Nile State, conducted by United Nations agencies Unicef, the World Health Organisation (WHO), MedAir and South Sudan’s health ministry, kicked off on Monday.

"The oral cholera vaccination provides protection to the vulnerable populations during the period when access to safe water, sanitation, and hygiene are inadequate in cholera hotspots," Olushayo Olu, WHO Representative to South Sudan said in a weekend statement.

WHO declared a cholera outbreak in early September, reporting 278 cases including eight deaths up to October 12 while Renk faced the largest outbreak of the disease in South Sudan from June 2016 to December 2017.

"The affected states included Blue Nile and Sennar bordering Ethiopia and South Sudan respectively. Given the proximity and since returnees from Sudan are streaming into Renk town, the risk of cholera importation to Renk is high," said WHO in its weekend statement.

Nearly 300 000 vaccine doses have been secured with support from Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, to prevent the risk of cholera outbreak in high-risk areas of the country.