100 days of Ebola and the race to stop the spread

WHO is calling to scale up the response in the face of ongoing situation, compounded by ongoing clashes among armed groups in eastern DRC, conflict-related displacement and growing hunger.

“We can bring the Ebola outbreak under control, but only through scaled-up action in affected communities,” said WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.

He also underlined the importance of a response led by national and local authorities, equipped with the necessary resources and supported by resolute partners.

In 100 days, the response has grown considerably in scale and capacity, with a testing network expanded from a single site to 19 laboratories now capable of analysing more than 3,000 samples daily.

Treatment capacity has jumped from fewer than 10 beds to over 1,300, community engagement activities have reached more than 2.5 million people and contact tracing has climbed from nine per cent in the first week of the outbreak to 84 per cent as of 18 August.

Scientific efforts have also intensified, with clinical trials of potential treatments, the evaluation of vaccine candidates and the roll-out of the first molecular diagnostic test for the Bundibugyo virus.

WHO regional director for emergency response in Africa Dr. Marie Roseline Belizaire told UN News “these are extraordinary advances,” but not yet sufficient to end the epidemic or stop the transmission of the virus.

Insecurity, displacement, attacks on health facilities and difficulties in accessing care continue to hamper the response.

Mortality rate remains high, both in communities and amongst patients receiving care. Deaths occurring outside Ebola treatment centres accounted for around 60 per cent of the 260 weekly deaths recorded over the last six weeks.

This figure highlights the ongoing difficulties in detecting cases early, referring patients swiftly to healthcare facilities and ensuring they have access to treatment, according to WHO, which stressed that interventions must be more tailored to local transmission dynamics and operational gaps, missions in active transmission hotspots must be scaled up and high-risk areas need to be well prepared before cases emerge.

The Ebola epidemic is unfolding amid a wider humanitarian crisis, where communities face malnutrition and lack access to safe drinking water.

“People are hungry; they need access to food; they need water,” underscored Dr Belizaire. “Humanitarian aid must also be provided alongside the Ebola response.”

The challenge over the coming weeks is to stay one step ahead of the outbreak, she said, setting out five priorities:

While there are currently no Ebola cases in South Sudan, risks persist with continued population movements to and from DRC, said UN agencies.

UN agencies and partners are working prevention efforts, including surveillance, screening at points of entry, training health workers, providing medical supplies and raising awareness nationwide through radio and social media.

UN Humanitarian Coordinator for South Sudan Ramanathan Balakrishnan stressed the need to scale up protection for humanitarian personnel following the abduction of four aid workers by unidentified armed men in a southwestern region of South Sudan while transporting critical Ebola supplies to the border town of Libogo.

Meanwhile, WHO’s regional director for Africa Dr. Mohamed Janabi issued a stark warning.

“Decisions we take today will determine how quickly we can bring this outbreak under control and save lives,” he said.