At leat100 Ebola virus patients have recovered in DR Congo out of over 1,000 confirmed cases, while Uganda has recorded 15 recoveries among 20 confirmed cases. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the recoveries show that early diagnosis and timely treatment saved lives after the Ebola outbreak was confirmed on May 15. ALSO READ: Rwanda ramps up Ebola prevention efforts So far, DR Congo has recorded 254 deaths linked to the outbreak, while Uganda has reported two. The outbreak was caused bu the Bundibugyo virus, one of six strains of Ebola virus. Meanwhile, France reported a case of Ebola virus. Health authorities said the case is a doctor who had returned from DR Congo. Ituri province in eastern DR Congo is the epicenter of the outbreak. Over the past month, WHO, the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), and other partners have worked with DR Congo’s Ministry of Health to expand treatment centres, strengthen laboratory and surveillance capacity, train health workers, and increase community awareness about the disease. According to the WHO, more support is still needed, including additional treatment centres, more trained health workers, wider testing coverage, and stronger community-based response teams. The agency has called for safe access to all affected areas and continued international support to bring the outbreak under control. Africa CDC and WHO launched a six-month response plan covering June to November to support efforts against the Ebola outbreak. The plan seeks $518 million to strengthen preparedness, detection, and response measures across the continent. The programme will focus on DR Congo, Uganda, and other countries considered at risk. It aims to strengthen surveillance, laboratory testing, patient care, infection prevention, and cross-border coordination. Early detection remains one of the strongest tools in controlling the disease. On June 1, WHO deployed 15 epidemiologists to DR Congo, trained 100 frontline health workers in disease surveillance and alert management, and distributed 20,000 surveillance tools to improve case detection and contact tracing. Additional laboratory supplies have been provided to speed up testing and diagnosis.
