Luanda, 10 June 2025 — The World Health Organization (WHO) today donated three mobile water quality testing kits to the Ministry of Health, through the Instituto Nacional de Investigação em Saúde (INIS), to strengthen Angola’s capacity to monitor and respond to waterborne disease risks—especially during health emergencies such as the ongoing cholera outbreak.

These mobile kits allow for on-the-spot analysis of water sources, enabling health teams to detect issues such as pH levels, chlorine concentration, turbidity, and other key indicators of water safety—without the delays caused by transporting samples to laboratories.

“In provinces like Lunda Norte, we’ve faced serious challenges collecting and transporting water samples from remote communities,” said  Alex Freeman, a WASH and Health logistics  specialist deployed to Angola with the support of the WHO Nairobi  AFRO Emergency Hub “Now, with these mobile kits, we can conduct accurate tests immediately at the point of collection, enabling faster decision-making and a more agile public health response.”

As part of the rollout, nine INIS staff members were trained on the use of the mobile kits, with additional training planned for personnel from other sectors in the coming weeks.

The testing kits are also a practical tool for routine monitoring in hospital settings, helping ensure safe water for patients and health workers. As part of WHO’s mandate to support water quality surveillance, the kits represent an important operational boost for both preventive health efforts and outbreak response.

“This is a great example of collaboration and targeted support,” said Simão Nhassengo, a WASH specialist deployed to Angola with the support of the government of the Netherlands. “These kits will play an important role in monitoring water safety across Angola and ultimately help prevent the spread of waterborne diseases like cholera.”

The initiative was made possible thanks to the generous contributions of the European Union through European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (ECHO), and the Embassy of the Netherlands, whose support has also enabled technical deployments to strengthen water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) capacity across the country.