Recent floods in the southeastern regions of Morocco continue to dominate discussions in the kingdom due to the significant human and material losses incurred. Moroccan health experts have highlighted the importance of proactive measures to prevent health consequences from such incidents, particularly the spread of infectious diseases in rural areas.
Experts warn that the stagnant water pools and marshes left by the floods in the valleys are breeding grounds for various infectious diseases, including Leishmaniasis. While opinions vary on the exact level of risk posed by these conditions in the southeastern valleys after the recent floods, there is consensus on the necessity of prevention through intensified sterilization campaigns by the ministry and providing sanitation resources to the affected residents.
Jaafar Heikal, a specialist in epidemiology, infectious diseases, and public health, mentioned that the stagnant, mud-filled water pools left by the floods in various valleys, especially in rural areas, are ideal breeding grounds for disease vectors like the sandfly, which transmits Leishmaniasis. Heikal noted that despite efforts to combat these vectors, they have not been entirely eradicated, posing a continuous risk.
The Directorate of Epidemiology and Disease Control at the Ministry of Health and Social Protection frequently increases epidemiological vigilance following such floods, urging regional health directorates to intensify their surveillance through field campaigns for detection and monitoring, and to ensure proactive sterilization campaigns using chemical pesticides against vectors of infectious diseases in various aquatic environments.
Heikal emphasized that prevention is better than cure, suggesting that it is crucial to prevent the proliferation of diseases in flood-affected areas through coordination between the Ministry of Health and Social Protection and the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, which should provide necessary information about the locations of these water pools for timely sterilization by specialized teams.
