India steps in with emergency aid as Ebola spreads in Congo
India has sent emergency pharmaceutical supplies, including diagnostics, therapeutics and infection-control materials, to support Ebola containment efforts in Congo. Africa CDC thanked India for the assistance as the outbreak in Congo and Uganda continues to spread with rising infections and fatalities
Johannesburg: India has sent emergency pharmaceutical supplies to support efforts to contain the Ebola outbreak in Congo, the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention said on Wednesday.
In a social media post, Ethiopia-headquartered Africa CDC said the consignment, donated by India, was received in Uganda by its Eastern Africa Regional Coordinating Centre.
The supplies include essential diagnostics, therapeutics, infection prevention and control materials, and case management support, which will be deployed to affected communities in eastern DR Congo, it said.
“Africa CDC welcomes the arrival of emergency pharmaceutical supplies generously donated by the Government and people of India to support the ongoing response to the Bundibugyo Ebola outbreak in the DRC,” the continental public health agency said.
It thanked India for its “continued support and commitment to protecting lives and advancing health security across the continent”.
The Bundibugyo strain is one of the six known species of the Ebola virus and has caused periodic outbreaks in parts of Africa since it was first identified in Uganda in 2007.
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), there are no approved drugs or vaccines for the strain of Ebola caused by the Bundibugyo virus Ebola is a severe and often fatal illness transmitted through direct contact with infected bodily fluids, contaminated materials or infected animals. Symptoms include fever, vomiting, diarrhoea and, in severe cases, internal and external bleeding.
The virus can get into the human population when people have close contact with the blood, secretions, organs or other bodily fluids of infected animals such as fruit bats, chimpanzees, gorillas, monkeys, forest antelope, or porcupines found ill or dead or in the rainforest.
India has, in recent years, expanded its health and development partnership with African countries through the supply of medicines, vaccines and medical assistance, particularly during public health emergencies such as the COVID-19 pandemic.
The WHO declared the ongoing Ebola outbreak in Congo and Uganda a Public Health Emergency of International Concern on May 17.
As of Tuesday, more than 1,000 suspected infections and at least 220 fatalities had been reported, including seven confirmed cases in Uganda, though the WHO and aid agencies say the actual scale of the outbreak might be significantly higher.
