WHO Africa says outbreak further complicated by coronavirus pandemic

YAOUNDE, Cameroon

Ebola outbreak in Democratic Republic of Congo’s (DRC) Equateur province continues to be of grave concern, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Tuesday.

In its weekly Health Emergencies Bulletin, WHO Africa said the epidemic has been further complicated by coronavirus along with measles, and humanitarian crisis in the Central African country.

“There is a lack of funding for the response, particularly that is required to prevent further spread, and inadequate human resources for risk communication and engagement in affected health zones and hotspots,” it said.

So far, 84 Ebola cases have been reported in nine health zones in the province since the declaration of the 11th Ebola outbreak in the DRC on June 1, Doctors Without Borders said.

“In both Ebola virus disease and COVID-19, there is a need to sustain a strong and robust surveillance system in order to detect, isolate, test and treat new suspected cases as early as possible, to improve outcomes in potential cases, and to break all chains of transmission,” according to the WHO.

Meanwhile, measles outbreak is showing a declining trend, which points to the efficacy of targeted vaccination campaigns in the past two years, the UN health agency said.

However, it added, certain hospitals still struggle with management of complicated cases, and the COVID-19 pandemic is preventing deployment of routine response teams to affected areas.

A mass vaccination campaign against measles, targeting 25,000 children in Kasabinyole, Kanzulinzuli, Madrandele, Tuungane and Malepe health zones, was launched in the DRC in March.