Brazil confirms over 1,600 microcephaly cases linked to Zika.

Lack of efficient water system and poor sanitation have been identified as driving the spread of the deadly Zika virus in Brazil, with over 1,600 microcephaly cases linked to the disease. 

Public health experts have found a strong link between inadequate water and sanitation systems among the poor of the developing world, and major outbreaks of mosquito-borne diseases such as Zika, dengue, and chikungunya.
 

Recife, a city of 3.7 million, is the epicenter of Brazils Zika virus outbreak. One factor driving the disease is that the city built on a mangrove swamp has deficient sanitation infrastructure, making the urban center a perfect breeding ground for mosquitos.

Half of Brazil´s population has inadequate sewage services, and 10 percent have none at all.

  While Brazil has repeatedly proposed enhancing its water and sanitation systems, lack of funds, bureaucratic red tape and corruption have combined to stall improvements.

Whether the incidence of Zika, dengue, chikungunya and other mosquito-borne diseases rises or falls, partly depends on how well Brazil addresses basic public health infrastructure problems.