GABORONE, Sept. 17 (Xinhua) -- About six children under the age of five years have died from diarrhoea in the past week in Botswana, the government said on Monday.
Speaking at a press conference in Gaborone, capital of Botswana, Alfred Madigele, Minister of Health and Wellness, said in the past week alone, about 1,776 cases of diarrhoea have been reported nationwide.
"It is the largest number to be ever recorded in the country in the last five years," he said.
The minister said his Ministry is still investigating the cause of the outbreak, adding that preliminary results indicated that Rota Virus was implicated.
He said the ministry have activated national rapid response team of public health specialists, nutritionists, paediatricians, pathologists, laboratories and other stakeholders like the World Health Organization to prevent the outbreak from becoming an epidemic.
"Six teams have been dispatched to districts to make sure all coordination in terms of response are implemented in the right manner," he said.
