The campaign started in the city of Butembo in eastern DRC
KINSHASA, Feb 16 (NNN-AGENCIES) — An Ebola vaccination campaign has begun in the city of Butembo, in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, the World Health Organization (WHO) said in a tweet on Monday.
Health workers at Matanda health centre, where the first Ebola patient was treated, were the first to be vaccinated, the WHO said.
Congo has confirmed four cases of Ebola since a resurgence of the virus was announced on Feb. 7 in Butembo, the epicentre of a previous outbreak that was declared over last June.
TANZANIA has announced that it is on high alert following an Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
According to Kigoma Regional medical officer Dr Simon Chacha, the country has strengthened testing around the borders and at its ports of entry.
Kigoma region in western Tanzania shares a border with Burundi and the DRC on the other side of Lake Tanganyika.
GUINEA: The health ministry declared an Ebola outbreak on Sunday.
The head of Guinea’s health agency said that the country was in the midst of an Ebola “epidemic situation” with seven cases confirmed in the West African nation, including three deaths.
The government said it had set up a treatment centre in Goueké town in the south-east where the cases were reported. Officials also disclosed that newly developed vaccines would be acquired through the WHO.
SIERRA LEONE: The government has activated its Health Emergency Response System to level II (Enhanced Surveillance, Active Case Finding and robust Community Engagement).
“National Rapid Response Teams are being dispatched to provide additional support to the District Health Management Teams. We intend to work very closely with our Guinean counterparts to quickly contain the situation.
“EVD is a severe, often fatal illness in humans. The virus is suspected to be transmitted to people from wild animals and spreads in the human population through human-to-human transmission. It can be transmitted through human contact with body fluids of a person infected with the virus,” a government statement said.
LIBERIA: A presidential spokesperson issued a statement in which the president ordered relevant authorities to take action on the resurgence in Guinea. The Guinean town that recorded the latest case shares a border with Liberia.
“However, no case of the disease has so far been detected in the country. The President’s instruction is intended to ensure Liberia acts proactively to avoid any epidemic situation, the kind Liberia witnessed in 2014.
“President Weah also mandates the health authorities to immediately engage communities in towns and villages bordering Guinea and increase anti-ebola measures,” the statement read in part.
WHO: The WHO is on full alert and is in contact with the manufacturer [of a vaccine] to ensure the necessary doses are made available as quickly as possible to help fight back, said Alfred George Ki-Zerbo, the WHO representative in Guinea, as saying.
WHO’s Regional Director Matshidiso Moeti said the agency was “ramping up readiness.”
The West African Ebola epidemic of 2014-16 affected 28,616 people, mainly in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone.
About 11,310 people died in what was the largest outbreak of the virus ever recorded – and 4,000 of those deaths were in Liberia alone. — NNN-AGENCIES
