The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has acknowledged that the Ebola outbreaks in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda are becoming serious and difficult to control. According to updated CDC figures, the number of Ebola cases has increased by 40% in just the past week, with the Democratic Republic of Congo recording 896 cases and 232 deaths, and Uganda reporting 19 cases and 2 deaths.
In the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Ituri province (the epicenter of the outbreak) has not only failed to contain the virus but has also spread to North Kivu and South Kivu provinces. The Africa CDC reports that the current outbreak is three times larger than the Ebola outbreak in Uganda in 2000, with the number of cases continuously increasing, indicating that community transmission is not being effectively controlled.
To date, only over 70 patients have been confirmed to have recovered, while experimental treatments are still being diligently researched by medical teams. In the 16 previous Ebola outbreaks in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the causative agent was the Zaire virus, for which a specific vaccine has already been developed.
Therefore, these outbreaks are usually not too severe or dangerous for the community. A major obstacle is the difficulty in contact tracing due to prolonged insecurity, rugged terrain, and shortages of personnel and funding. In fact, with approximately 900 cases, the number of people requiring monitoring should ideally be between 17,000 and 35,000, but currently only about 4,000-6,300 people are being monitored.
Ituri province, which accounts for over 90% of the cases, is an area heavily affected by years of conflict, resulting in the displacement of nearly 1 million people. The constant displacement of people, coupled with difficult transportation conditions, has hampered efforts to control the epidemic.
The United Nations has allocated an additional $4 million in aid to Uganda for use in health, logistics, epidemiological surveillance, and disease control in 29 locations, including refugee reception areas. Agencies within the world's largest multilateral organization are also enthusiastically supporting the Democratic Republic of Congo by providing medical supplies and establishing health checkpoints at Kinshasa International Airport to prevent the spread of disease in the region.
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa announced that South Africa is increasing its commitment to support to $13.5 million, calling for facilitating safe shipping corridors, promoting investment in pharmaceutical production, and establishing a common procurement mechanism in Africa. Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa also announced that his country will contribute $1 million to the Africa CDC to help prevent the spread of the disease.
The World Health Organization (WHO) and the Africa CDC have developed a joint Ebola response plan with an estimated cost of $518 million. However, the Africa CDC warns that if the necessary resources are not mobilized within four weeks, the response cost could rise to $1.5 billion, or even $7.5 billion as the disease continues to spread. Africa CDC Director-General Jean Kaseya emphasized that public health measures such as early detection, timely isolation, and increased community participation remain top priorities for controlling the outbreak.
Source: https://nhandan.vn/dich-ebola-khong-the-chu-quan-post970454.html
