Death toll from Ebola outbreak in DRC rises to 2,209 – AU
By Muhammad Auwal
The death toll from the ongoing Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has climbed to 2,209, the African Union (AU) said.
The AU said the figure represented the situation by Sunday, December 8
The country had registered additional 59 new human causalities from the 2,150 deaths that were reported as of Oct. 13.
The AU, which provides support to continental and international efforts against the epidemic through its specialised agency — Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), also stated that 3,327 Ebola cases were reported at the time.
The AU also said that some 1,087 people recovered from the disease and that the overall Ebola fatality ratio remained at 67 per cent.
Last week, the AU Commission hosted a resource mobilisation event — “Africa against Ebola Private Sector and Partner Forum” — to solicit resources from AU member states.
It urged “other partners to support efforts to end the Ebola virus disease in DRC and contain it from spreading’’.
During the event, more than 55 million dollars was pledged along with other in-kind supports and assistance to Africa’s fight against Ebola.
The current Ebola outbreak in the DRC was declared on Aug. 1, 2018 and the outbreak was eventually declared a public health emergency of international concern by the World Health Organisation in August.
Africa CDC in its latest periodic report issued late on Friday said Regional Collaborating Centres had continued to support preparedness in AU member states, mainly through sharing information and preparedness plans over the past weeks.
Africa CDC volunteers and experts have also supported through the tracing of 831 contacts and investigation of 1,678 alerts, including active case-finding for 353 suspected cases.
