Insecurity, lack of trust on the part of the community Efforts to control the Ebola epidemic in the DRC – New Delhi Times

According to the World Health Organization, insecurity and mistrust of the community in North Kivu province, which is plagued by conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, is a major obstacle to international health efforts to control human rights. deadly Ebola outbreak. According to the latest official figures, the number of Ebola cases in eastern DRC is 1,089, including 679 deaths.

The World Health Organization reports an increase in the number of Ebola cases. Last week, it was reported that there were 72 registered cases compared to 56 cases of the deadly disease the previous week.

Ibrahima-Soce Fall, WHO Assistant Director-General for Emergency Situations, attributes the rise of insecurity and violence in the burning areas of Butembo and Katwa in North Kivu . He added that this had significantly disrupted the ability of health workers to cope with the disease.

As a result, he says people in contact with infected people are not protected. He says contacts can not be vaccinated or monitored for signs of illness. He says that burials are not done safely, resulting in the infection of some people in mourning.

Fall explained that the difficulty of getting people to understand that the Ebola virus is a problem still complicates the situation.

"There are so many other problems like insecurity, the many years of slaughter, access to water, education, and so on. It takes time to convince them that the Ebola virus is their real problem, "he said. "And that's why we started this community dialogue – to listen to them, to understand their issues and to work with diplomatic partners, such as the World Bank and UNICEF, to address the other issues they have been facing for years. many years."

As part of this awareness program, Mr. Fall reported that 40 youth from local communities had been trained and were now part of the burial and disinfection team. He says that the answer to this question and other measures requested by the community is starting to have a positive impact.

The WHO estimates that it will take at least six months before she can control the Ebola outbreak. He hopes that the number of cases will continue to increase until comprehensive response measures can be put in place in all vulnerable areas.

Credit: Voice of America (VOA)