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Washington, United States | AFP | The World Bank announced on Wednesday that it was deploying a new $ 300 million crisis aid in DR Congo to help contain the Ebola epidemic, which has plagued for a year.
The funding comes after the World Health Organization (WHO) declared last week the current outbreak of public health emergency of international concern.
The funds will add to the $ 100 million provided by the bank after the outbreak of Ebola in August 2018, the World Bank said in a statement.
But officials say an additional $ 200 million may be needed in the next six months.
"Together, we must take urgent action to end the Ebola epidemic that is destroying lives and livelihoods in the Democratic Republic of Congo," said Kristalina, World Bank Director General Georgieva, in a statement.
"Communities and health workers at the forefront of this epidemic urgently need more support and resources from the international community to prevent this crisis from worsening on the inside. country and spreads across borders.
Since last August, Ebola has killed more than 1,700 of the 2,500 people infected in DR Congo during the second largest epidemic since the death of more than 11,300 people between 2014 and 2016 in Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus welcomed the announcement.
"We hope this will encourage other partners to increase their contributions to end this epidemic," he said on Twitter.
Annette Dixon, Vice President of Human Development at the World Bank, who oversees the health programs, said the new funding "indicates that we are really concerned about the need to intensify the response because the pandemic shows no signs of sign of weakening at this stage ".
While the country has proven itself by quickly ending previous Ebola pandemics, the current epidemic is concentrated in an extremely poor region of the country facing many other problems, including lack of security, she told AFP.
– Beyond Ebola –
There must be a "recognition that these communities need support before and after Ebola," she said in an interview, noting that these communities also had cholera outbreaks. , measles and malaria.
DRC Health Minister Oly Ilunga resigned on Monday after a dispute with President Felix Tshisekedi over the government's response to the Ebola virus and plans to introduce a second vaccine.
But that has not derailed the efforts in the country, said Dixon, and the World Bank is working with the government on the crisis response plan for the next six months, which will require funding for the next six months. about $ 500 million, including the $ 300 million announced Wednesday. .
Ebola is highly contagious and has an average mortality rate of about 50%. It is transmitted to humans by wild animals and spreads by close contact with the blood, body fluids, secretions or organs of an infected person.
Stakeholders had hoped that the Ebola outbreak would be easier to control, including through a new vaccine.
While more than 160,000 people in the affected provinces of North Kivu and Ituri have been vaccinated, confinement efforts have been hampered by chronic disorders in the region and lack of confidence of health workers in the affected areas. communities.
The new aid, in the form of donations and zero-rate loans, will go to the front-line health response in areas of the country affected by the epidemic, the bank said.
According to Mr. Dixon, one of the priorities is to gain the trust of local communities, including providing free medical care, so that residents feel comfortable reporting their health problems and detecting the virus.
The funding will also go to cash-for-work programs, which pay unemployed people who participate in local infrastructure projects to reduce poverty in the region and remove financial barriers in communities. stressed. "
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