WHO begins Ebola vaccinations in DRC’s Kasai Province amid first outbreak in three years
The DRC Health Ministry reports 32 suspected Ebola cases, including 20 confirmed infections and 16 deaths, with a new case 70 kilometres from Bulape raising concerns of wider transmission.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has begun vaccinating frontline health workers and people who have come into contact with Ebola patients in Kasai Province, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), following the country’s first outbreak in three years, declared earlier this month.
According to WHO, 400 of the 2,000 Ebola vaccine doses have been sent from Kinshasa to Bulape, the epicentre of the outbreak. An additional 45,000 doses, approved by the International Coordinating Group on Vaccine Provision, are expected to be delivered to other affected areas in the coming days.
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"The vaccine is being administered through ring vaccination strategy, which entails vaccinating individuals at the highest risk of infection after having come into contact with a patient confirmed with the virus," WHO said in a statement seen by The Eastleigh Voice.
"The Ervebo vaccine is safe and protects against the Zaire ebolavirus species, which has been confirmed as the cause of the ongoing outbreak."
48 experts deployed
WHO has also deployed 48 experts in surveillance, clinical care, infection control, and community engagement to work alongside partners and the DRC government to support response efforts and prevent further spread of the virus.
WHO Director-General Tedros Ghebreyesus confirmed the rollout in a statement on X on Sunday.
"Vaccination of frontline health workers and contacts of people infected with #Ebola has begun in the #DRC's Kasai Province, where an outbreak of the disease has been declared," he said.
The DRC Health Ministry reports 32 suspected Ebola cases so far, including 20 confirmed infections and 16 deaths. A new case detected 70 kilometres from Bulape has raised concerns about wider transmission.
WHO warned there is a moderate chance the outbreak could spread to neighbouring Angola.
Aid groups have cautioned that the DRC may face difficulties containing the outbreak due to recent cuts in foreign funding and the scaling back of US Agency for International Development (USAID) programmes.
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