The manufacturer of one of only two cholera vaccines for use in humanitarian emergencies is to halt production at the end of this year, just as the world faces an “unprecedented” series of deadly outbreaks, the Guardian has learned.

Shantha Biotechnics, a wholly owned Indian subsidiary of the French pharmaceutical company Sanofi, will stop production of its Shanchol vaccine within months and cease supply by the end of 2023, causing alarm among health officials.

Philippe Barboza, the World Health Organization’s team lead for cholera, said Shantha’s move to halt production had come despite repeated appeals from the WHO’s director general, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.

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