We stopped the spread of deadly Ebola in Congo – while what happened? | Oly Ilunga Kalenga | Global development

T The ninth and final epidemic of the deadly Ebola virus in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is now over. I did not think I would be able to pronounce those words so soon after everything started on May 8th. This epidemic, the most difficult that the country has ever known, had all the characteristics of a major crisis.

Ebola surfaced simultaneously in two remote rural areas, with health workers among confirmed cases. The virus quickly spread to Mbandaka, a city of more than 1.2 million inhabitants in Congo, a busy transportation corridor. It could have spread to other big cities, including Kinshasa, our capital, where more than 12 million Congolese live, and neighboring countries, but that is not the case.

So what happened? The ability of the global community to contain the spread of the Ebola virus has greatly improved since the 2014 Ebola outbreak in West Africa. With our partners, we have applied many of the lessons learned from our experiences in West Africa and the DRC.

Local ownership remains the cornerstone of a successful response. The Ministry of Health has stepped in to lead the efforts on the ground. By the time international support arrived in the DRC, the key elements of a comprehensive response were already in place and working.

The rapid mobilization of finances is another key factor. The government's $ 56.8 million (£ 43.3 million) triennial action plan was fully funded within 48 hours of its release, with the DRC government advancing $ 4 million. International partners, including donor governments and the World Bank, have also mobilized – the latter has for the first time triggered its new pandemic emergency financing mechanism and has rapidly reallocated funds through its program. health in the DRC. This is a stark contrast to West Africa, where it took months to raise the necessary funds, while the death toll kept rising to 11,000.

The use of the Ebola vaccine, which has proven very effective in a clinical trial in Guinea in 2015, was one of the most innovative components of this response. The new vaccine has not only proven safe and effective against the Ebola virus; it has also changed the perception of the disease by the community, which is now considered treatable. Throughout the outbreak, more than 3,300 people were vaccinated. I myself have been vaccinated to show the safety of the vaccine and break the stigma that surrounds it.

I learned that working with the community, especially as part of public health information campaigns, would take you far. The Church and traditional leaders are your best allies in conveying public health messages that compel communities to change their old habits and challenge their traditions. In Mbandaka, our greatest health advocates became the 4000 motorcycle drivers, whose daily work exposed them to the risk of transporting infectious people. They started promoting vaccination and hygiene messages on local radio stations.

The pan-African character of this response was quite exceptional. Epidemics do not stop at national borders. The importance of regional cooperation for the prevention and management of epidemics can not be overstated. Guinean health workers participated in the immunization efforts, epidemiologists of the newly established disease control centers in Africa and the African Field Epidemiology Network worked with our surveillance experts. This regional collaboration sends a strong signal that Africa is ready to take the wheel to solve its problems.

While the Ebola virus remains a daunting challenge for the DRC and the rest of the world, we have raised the bar on our own ability as a country to detect and respond effectively to epidemics despite very difficult circumstances. We must continue to improve our ability to contain diseases and prepare for the Ebola epidemic number 10, which we know will occur.

This ninth outbreak of Ebola in the DRC was unlike any other, but the lessons learned here can be applied anywhere in the world. With the increase in trade and travel on a global scale, the risks of epidemics increase in frequency and in spread. In this respect, all countries are equally vulnerable and it is in our common interest to ensure global health security. The first step is to learn from each other and to badume our responsibilities by improving our ability to detect and respond to any epidemic that begins within our national borders.