WASH & Water Treatment

The May 2026 Bundibugyo Ebola PHEIC in DRC and Uganda is forcing WASH officers to rapidly procure chlorine, water storage, and ETU infrastructure. This guide covers empirically validated chlorine consumption figures, water bladder requirements, and PPE decontamination logistics based on field data from Sierra Leone ETUs and current WHO guidance.

WHO declared the DRC-Uganda Ebola outbreak a PHEIC on 17 May 2026. Ebola Treatment Units require up to 400 litres per bed per day — 20 times the Sphere minimum — and 0.5% chlorine solutions for surface decontamination. This post sets out the technical WASH requirements for ETU deployment and identifies the procurement priorities for NGO field teams operating in Ituri Province and northern Uganda.

When displacement outpaces infrastructure, collapsible bladder tanks are the bridge between water supply and water access. This field guide covers Sphere-compliant sizing, chlorination management, and why pre-positioned Butyl Products stock in Juba and Kampala changes the procurement calculus for WASH teams in East Africa and DRC.

DRC's cholera outbreak — the worst in 25 years — is crossing borders into Uganda's refugee settlements as the 2026 rainy season peaks. This technical guide covers HTH calcium hypochlorite dosing, storage, and procurement for WASH teams setting up large-scale water treatment at displacement sites in East and Central Africa.

South Sudan's cholera outbreak is still generating active transmission in 2026. This field guide helps WASH officers choose between Aquatabs 67mg and P&G Purifier of Water based on source water turbidity, Sphere FRC thresholds, and operational compliance — with dosing protocols for both products and guidance on when to switch to HTH Calcium Hypochlorite for community-scale treatment.

In DRC, South Sudan, and Uganda, water trucking is not a stopgap — it is the water supply infrastructure for millions of people. This field guide covers chlorination dosing at the filling point, tank hygiene schedules, multi-point quality testing, and what programmes consistently get wrong in cholera response contexts.

Kenya's long rains have triggered one of the country's most severe flood emergencies in years. With more than 400,000 people displaced across 30 counties and flooding still active as of May 2026, NGO field teams are scrambling to meet acute WASH needs in evacuation centres and informal settlements where water sources have been contaminated and sanitation infrastructure damaged. Understanding what belongs in an emergency WASH kit — and how to source it quickly — is the differe

Somalia's 2026 drought has left 7.5M people affected and response plans only 13.4% funded. SLS supplies WASH equipment via the East Africa corridor.

Cholera cases in Southern Africa rose more than seven times in the first six weeks of 2026 compared to the same period in 2025, driven by flooding, cyclone damage, and mass displacement across the region. Across East and Central Africa as a whole, more than 178,000 cases were recorded over the preceding 15 months. For WASH teams deploying into emergency sites, chlorination is not a background activity — it is the single most critical intervention for preventing transmission,

Eastern Chad hosts over 900,000 Sudanese refugees facing acute water shortages and active cholera. A field guide for NGO WASH teams on equipment selection and regional procurement.

The conflict in Sudan has created what is now the largest displacement crisis in the world. As of late 2025, more than 11.7 million people had been forced from their homes — 7.26 million internally displaced and a further 4.25 million who have crossed into neighbouring countries, including South Sudan, Uganda, Chad, and Egypt. Behind that number is a near-total collapse of WASH infrastructure across conflict-affected areas: water systems damaged or destroyed, fuel supply disr

In early 2026, the Democratic Republic of Congo recorded its worst cholera outbreak in 25 years — more than 64,000 cases and 1,800 deaths, with 17 of 26 provinces affected. At the same time, UNICEF confirmed active cholera transmission across 12 countries in West and Central Africa, with 80,000 children at heightened risk as the rainy season began. For WASH coordinators mobilising into these environments, the immediate question is rarely which water purification tablet to pro

Somalia's 2026 drought has entered its fourth consecutive failed rainy season, and for an estimated 7.5 million people across 64 districts, the consequences are visible at the water point. As shallow wells dry up and rivers recede, emergency water trucking has become the primary WASH intervention across Gedo, Lower Juba, and Middle Juba. For NGO WASH teams working in these conditions, the critical question is not just how to distribute water but how to treat it safely when so

South Sudan's 2026 rainy season is beginning against one of the most severe humanitarian backdrops the country has seen. This is the sixth consecutive year of extreme flooding — and it is arriving with a cholera outbreak already exceeding 100,000 cases, the longest-running in the country's history, and more than 267,000 people displaced in Jonglei state alone since late 2025. For NGO logistics officers and WASH coordinators operating in-country, the window to pre-position cri

Access to safe drinking water remains one of the most urgent humanitarian challenges in South Sudan. With widespread flooding, mass displacement, and fragile water infrastructure, the right water purification solution can be the difference between a safe water point and a cholera outbreak. Aquatabs — the world's most widely used water purification tablet — is a frontline tool for WASH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene) programs across the country. But not all Aquatabs are the sa

More than a year after the USAID freeze, the humanitarian procurement landscape in East and Central Africa has shifted in ways that are no longer temporary. NGOs that previously relied on USAID-funded supply chains to move water purification tablets, storage tanks, and WASH kits into the field are now rebuilding those pipelines from the ground up — and the organisations that are managing best are the ones that have moved fastest toward direct regional sourcing. This post is a

South Sudan is currently experiencing its largest cholera outbreak on record — over 96,000 confirmed cases since September 2024, with active transmission in nine states and the 2026 rainy season now under way. For WASH coordinators and logistics teams facing urgent procurement decisions, the question is not simply whether to stock water purification products. It is which product, deployed where, and why. This guide sets out the practical differences between Aquatabs and P&G P

By Specialized Logistics Solutions | March 2026 | Download the SLS 2026 Company Profile Every year without exception, the rains arrive in East and Central Africa and the same sequence of events unfolds. Roads that were passable in March are impassable rivers of mud by May. IDP camps constructed on elevated ground find themselves surrounded by standing water. Boreholes are overwhelmed by agricultural and surface runoff. Latrines overflow. And within weeks — sometimes days — ch

By Specialized Logistics Solutions | March 2026 | View SLS WASH Product Range In December 2025, UNICEF declared the Democratic Republic of the Congo's cholera outbreak the worst the country has seen in 25 years. By that point, the DRC had recorded 64,427 confirmed cases and 1,888 deaths in a single year — with children accounting for nearly one in four cases. In Kinshasa, case fatality rates hit 8%, driven by flooding, overwhelmed infrastructure, and communities with no prior

When floodwaters surge through communities in East and Central Africa, the immediate threat is not only displacement—it is the catastrophic contamination of drinking water supplies. In low-infrastructure environments such as South Sudan, where waterborne disease already claims thousands of lives each year, a flood crisis can trigger a public health emergency within hours. Safe water delivery, measured not in litres but in lives, becomes one of the most urgent humanitarian log