HAMUKUNGU, Uganda, 8 June 2010 -- As this fishing village comes to life in the early morning, a young girl wades into Lake George and fills a bright yellow plastic container with water.
It's a common sight in Kasese district: men, women and children filling water containers in rivers and lakes, despite the very real threat of cholera. Last year, cholera infected more than 500 people in this area and killed about a dozen.
While programmes encouraging the use of bottled or boiled drinking water have been initiated in many districts, experts say that deeply ingrained attitudes about cholera need to change before the situation can improve.
"I think the one issue that we're not addressing is the behaviour change," said UNICEF Water and Environmental Sanitation Specialist Paul Semakula. "We're not looking at what [people] think about cholera. Their perspective is 'cholera is not dangerous.' After all, you get treated in two or three days and you feel fine. So they don't think it's something they need to fight."
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