Africa: West Africa on Alert as Ebola Hits DR Congo Again

The UK has joined the international effort to contain the latest outbreak of Ebola as four new cases of the highly infectious disease have been reported in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

The total number of known cases now stands at 25 and includes two health workers who came into contact with people who had been infected, according to local reports.

The country's health ministry confirmed earlier this week that 17 people in the northwest of the country had died from Ebola, describing the fresh outbreak as a "public health emergency with international impact".

 The UK Department for International Development (Difid) announced on Thursday it had donated £1 million to the response in an effort to avoid a repeat of the 2014 Ebola outbreak in West Africa, which killed more than 11,000 people.

The UK-based Wellcome Trust also announced £2 million of funding to support the government of DRC and the World Health Organization (WHO) in research efforts. 

International Development Secretary Penny Mordaunt said: "The Ebola epidemic in 2014 highlighted that to save lives we need to act quickly to stop the spread of this disease.

"We’re well-practiced in responding to disease outbreaks, and are coordinating across government to support the WHO in their leadership of the response. Vaccines have been stockpiled, we have built research and monitoring capacity, and the Rapid Support Team of health experts stand ready to be deployed if needed".

Jeremy Farrar, director of the Wellcome Trust, said: "It’s vital the global response to this outbreak is swift. 

"We must ensure the very best protection for the communities at risk and for the health workers working to protect lives – now and for future outbreaks."

Peter Salama, WHO deputy director-general, emergency preparedness and response, welcomed the UK support.

“The first step in containing this outbreak is to understand the extent of transmission, ensure care for people infected, engage communities and trace contacts. The generous support from Wellcome and partners like DFID in combination with WHO’s Contingency Fund for Emergencies is already making a difference.”