Africa CDC declares continental emergency over Ebola outbreak
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The Democratic Republic of the Congo has recorded 131 deaths from 513 suspected cases of Ebola.
PHOTO: AFP
ADDIS ABABA – The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) has declared the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Uganda a Continental Public Health Emergency, in a statement late on May 18.
The DRC has recorded 131 deaths from 513 suspected cases of Ebola, and there has been one death in neighbouring Uganda.
Declaring a continental emergency empowers the Africa CDC, based in Ethiopia, to mobilise extra resources, including emergency response teams and surveillance operations.
“Africa CDC expresses deep concern about the high risk of regional spread due to intense cross-border population movements, mobility related to mining activities, insecurity in affected areas, weak infection prevention and control measures... and the proximity of affected areas to Rwanda and South Sudan,” it said.
The agency said it was working closely with the World Health Organization to strengthen coordination, as developed in response to recent mpox and cholera outbreaks.
“This outbreak is occurring in one of the continent’s most complex operational environments, marked by insecurity, population mobility, fragile health systems, and the limited availability of medical countermeasures for Bundibugyo strain Ebola virus disease,” said Africa CDC head Jean Kaseya. AFP
