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By HALIMA ABDALLAH
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Ugandan authorities say the country's health system has been successful in curbing the spread of the deadly Ebola virus that has killed at least three people in Kasese, a border district with the Democratic Republic of Congo, which has been fighting for 11 months.
The announcement comes as the US government has announced nearly $ 100 million in aid to the DRC government to strengthen efforts to contain the epidemic. The contribution raises the hope that the epidemic will be controlled.
However, other neighbors, including South Sudan, Kenya and Rwanda, fear that the risk of spreading the disease will occur.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus announced that the DRC's funding needs for Ebola were $ 98 million, of which $ 44 million had been received. He said funding was a major problem in Ebola control efforts in the DRC.
"We will continue to mobilize global and regional support to control this epidemic as quickly as possible. It is not clean before the end of the epidemic in the DRC, "said Dr. Tedros in Uganda when he returned from the DRC in June.
In response, USAID last week bridged the gap that should help stem the epidemic that has ravaged the DRC since August 2018.
The subtype of Ebola virus in Zaire caused nearly 1,600 deaths and 2,244 confirmed cases among Congolese on 5 July.
This is the second largest outbreak of Ebola recorded after the 2014 outbreak in West Africa, which killed more than 11,000 people.
In June, USAID Administrator Mark Green visited Ebola-affected areas in the DRC to observe programming and intervention, where he met with them. Local community leaders, visited health care systems and staff of partners responding to the outbreak.
USAID funds will support infection prevention and control activities, training of health workers, community involvement interventions, the promotion of safe and dignified burials, and the provision of medical care. food badistance for people and communities affected by Ebola.
This badistance also strengthens Goma's preparedness efforts for communities at risk of Ebola.
Because of its infection rate, Ebola is a global threat to life.
So far, three Ugandans have been killed by the virus and the countries, including the neighbors, remain in a state of alert.
"This epidemic presents a unique set of challenges, including insecurity and difficulty in getting the community to accept the response," reads a USAID statement.
The DRC government, the United Nations, other Great Lakes countries, the United States, and the international community, in partnership with local communities, must respond vigorously and are critical to stopping the spread of the disease, according to USAid.
In September 2018, USAID deployed a disaster response team comprised of USAID health experts and US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (DRC). ) in the DRC to coordinate the US response to the epidemic.
"As we continue to increase our badistance to the epidemic, we strongly encourage additional contributions from other donors to meet the needs of those affected by this epidemic and to control it as soon as possible," reads the report. USAid release.
Updates in Uganda
Meanwhile, Uganda has raised more than $ 18 million for the preparation and control of the disease.
The funds were used to create Ebola treatment centers and train more than 500 health workers. Uganda has also vaccinated 4,419 front-line health workers against Ebola.
A joint opinion on Ebola virus disease in Uganda reported that no new cases of Ebola have been confirmed.
The 110 people who had direct or indirect contact with confirmed patients followed the 21 days of mandatory follow-up without developing any signs of the disease.
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