Treating acute respiratory infections costs the region 8.4 billion dollars a year, according to WaterAid, an international non-governmental organization that focuses on water, sanitation and hygiene.

Health facilities without adequate water, sanitation and hygiene leave patients and staff vulnerable to such infections, the report warned.

The study explored rates of these conditions in Ethiopia, Ghana, Malawi, Mali, Nigeria, Uganda and Zambia.

In 2022, an excess of 277,160 deaths due to this cause were reported in all seven sub-Saharan African countries.

Nigeria had the highest incidence in 2022, followed by Ethiopia, Uganda, Ghana, Malawi, Zambia and Mali, and experts estimate that half of the average number of cases would be antimicrobial resistant.

The economic cost for this cause of death in the above-mentioned countries combined of 8.4 billion dollars accounts for on average 1.1 percent of the total gross domestic product and 4.6 percent of health expenditures, the study showed.

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