NAIROBI: The head of the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warned Tuesday that Congo’s Ebola outbreak could be the worst ever, saying containing it could cost billions of dollars later if critical vulnerabilities in the response are not quickly addressed.
More than 800 rare cases Bundibugyo dynasty192 deaths have been reported in Congo, for which there is no proven treatment or vaccine. Government data show that the disease, which is transmitted through bodily fluids even after death, is spreading rapidly in three provinces.
“If we don’t stop the outbreak very soon, it will be worse than it was in West Africa and eastern DRC,” he added. Africa CDC Director-General Jean Cassia said at a virtual meeting of African heads of state in Burundi.
His warning, which echoed similar predictions by the US Centers for Disease Control, pointed to the 2014-16 outbreak in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone, which killed more than 11,000 people, and a less deadly outbreak in 2018 in Congo.
A Red Cross official said separately on Tuesday that the Ebola epidemic in eastern DRC had not yet peaked.
“We fear that this will take a year to end this disease,” Bruno Michon, director of operations at the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, told reporters via video link from eastern Congo.
Critical challenges
The response has been hampered by a shortage of treatment centers and community resistance to strict hygiene measures. Health officials said that more than a month after the outbreak was announced, the true extent remains unknown.
IFRC teams, which help with community engagement and safe and dignified burials of Ebola victims, have faced verbal abuse, threats and attacks in recent days, Michon said.
Cassia of the Africa CDC listed a series of critical challenges including insufficient resources to trace the contacts of more than 800 confirmed cases of Ebola.
“We are only following 12% of our people. This is a key indicator for us. It means we do not know the extent of this outbreak yet,” he said. He pointed out that there is also a significant shortage in the number of burial teams and a shortage of personal protective equipment.
High costs
The Africa CDC is seeking $518 million for a joint plan with the World Health Organization aimed at containing the outbreak in Africa, warning that it could cost tens of billions of dollars later if support is not available.
“If we don’t get it in the next four weeks, we will not ask again for $500 million, we will ask for $1.5 billion. If we delay it, it will be $7.5 billion,” Casilla said.
He added: “If we do not invest today with clear actions to target all the vulnerabilities we are talking about, we will respond to an outbreak that will cost a lot of money.”
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said at the same meeting that his country would increase its pledge to combat Ebola to $13.5 million. China also said it would provide more emergency support.
(Reporting by Emma Farge and Vincent Momo Nzilani; Editing by Alison Williams, Kevin Levy and Bill Berkrot)
