Health workers in South Sudan are being vaccinated against Ebola amid fears the deadly virus will spread from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
Front-line responders in high-risk areas of South Sudan - including the capital Juba - started receiving the jab yesterday.
Merck - the pharma giant behind the vaccine - delivered 2,160 doses to the African nation.
No countries neighbouring the DRC have yet been affected by the ongoing outbreak, which has killed hundreds.
As of last Sunday, there were 682 confirmed Ebola cases and 54 probable incidences across the DRC, according to its Ministry of Public Health.
Some 459 people have died from the virus, of which 405 fatalities are confirmed.
'It is absolutely vital we are prepared for any potential case of Ebola spreading beyond the Democratic Republic of the Congo,' said Dr Matshidiso Moeti, the World Health Orgnization's (WHO) regional director for Africa.
'WHO is investing a huge amount of resources into preventing Ebola from spreading outside DRC and helping governments ramp up their readiness to respond should any country have a positive case of Ebola.'
Vaccination began in Yambio, but health workers in Tombura, Yei, Nimule and Juba will be offered the jab.
The vaccine protects against the Zaire strain of the virus. Zaire is behind the DRC's ongoing tenth outbreak, which began on August 1 last year.
As well as the WHO, the Ministry of Health of South Sudan; Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance; UNICEF; and the US Center for Disease Control and Prevention are also supporting the vaccination programme.
On top of the vaccinations, the WHO has also deployed more than 30 staff to these high-risk areas and has helped train 60 health workers to administer the jab - which is yet to be licensed.
'Although research is ongoing, the evidence so far suggests the Ebola vaccine is a highly effective tool to help stop epidemics and can be used to prevent this national outbreak from becoming a regional one,' Dr Seth Berkley, CEO of Gavi, said.
'Vaccinating front-line workers and health workers in South Sudan border regions will be crucial. An outbreak in South Sudan would be deeply concerning.'
Gavi - which has donated $2million (around £1,518,090) to support the vaccination efforts - is offering the jab under 'compassionate use' as part of recommendations from the Strategic Advisory Group of Experts on Immunization.
The same jab was used in the Equateur province of the DRC last May and June to combat another outbreak.
The Ministry of Health has also set up 17 screening points to assess travellers entering South Sudan who may be infected with Ebola.
Nearly one million people have been screened so far.
Protective gear for responders is also being stockpiled in a specialist warehouse.
Uganda began vaccinating its front-line workers last November, with more than 2,600 medics across eight high-risk areas receiving the jab.
In the DRC, over 66,000 people have been vaccinated, of which more than 21,000 are health or front-line workers.
Rwanda is also planning to vaccinate its first-line responders.
As of last Sunday, 459 people are thought to have died from the Ebola outbreak in the DRC
Ebola is spreading within the DRC, with nine new cases being reported in Katwa - a city of several hundred thousand people just outside Butembo - earlier this week.
The ongoing outbreak's death count is second only to the 2013-to-2016 epidemic that decimated West Africa.
The health ministry said in a daily bulletin that the area near the Ugandan border has emerged as the outbreak's new epicentre.
Health officials have already expressed concern about Ebola travelling south and reaching the DRC city of Goma, which sits on the border with Rwanda.
Goma has almost double the population of Butembo, meaning there is a much higher potential for the virus to spread quickly.
If Ebola does make it to the major city of Goma then 'all bets are off' for the bid to control the outbreak, one health official said earlier this month.
In preparation, the WHO and the DRC's health ministry have already sent rapid response and vaccination teams to Kayina.
Health officials have described the DRC as 'one of the most complex settings possible', largely due to widespread militia violence in eastern Congo, which experts claim has hampered the response from aid workers.
First-line workers have been kidnapped, had to dodge bullets, been confronted by armed groups and seen treatment centres ransacked.
Mistrust among the locals to comply with health officials has also been a challenge.
Experts have said people's unwillingness to come forward and be screened leads them to believe the number of cases could be even higher.
Laurie Garrett, former senior fellow of global health at think-tank Council on Foreign Relations, said cases keep 'popping up unexpectedly out of thin air' in a piece for Foreign Policy[1].
The outbreak - the second worst in history after the 2013-to-2016 epidemic - was declared in August. Pictured is the funeral of a baby with suspected Ebola in Beni last December 18
A worker is pictured being decontaminated after carrying an ill baby in Beni last December 18
Ebola can be transmitted between humans via blood and the other bodily fluids of patients, as well as contaminated surfaces.
With women at the forefront of care in communities in the DRC, gender disparities have meant two-thirds of Ebola patients have been women.
The country is predicted to have at least six more months of suffering ahead before the outbreak comes to an end.
But if the disease spreads out of the north-east region, where it has so far been contained, it could rage on for even longer.
References
- ^ Foreign Policy (foreignpolicy.com)
Newer articles:
- South Sudan peace monitoring body calls for restraint in Yei - 30/01/2019 14:04
- UNICEF Asks for $180 Million to Feed South Sudanese - 30/01/2019 13:47
- South Sudan enters into an Agreement with the African Energy Chamber to provide Technical Assistance to its Petroleum Sector - 30/01/2019 06:04
- Manawatū man in South Sudan enjoying the challenge - 29/01/2019 14:53
- Harvard Activist Detained in South Sudan for Six Months ‘Could Be Put to Death,’ Lawyer Warns in Urgent Appeal to United Nations - 29/01/2019 13:44
Older news items
- Sudan’s Bashir vows to bring peace as protests called in conflict zones - 29/01/2019 02:49
- Face-to-face with child soldiers told to rape and kill in South Sudan - 28/01/2019 17:50
- Young athletes come together in peace on National Unity Day in South Sudan - 28/01/2019 06:37
- South Sudan vaccinates health workers against Ebola - 28/01/2019 05:17
- Oil and Natural Gas : South Sudan Resumes Oil Production in Former Unity State - 28/01/2019 04:40
Latest news items (all categories):
- The Collo Kingdom Remains Underdeveloped: Five Hundred Years Later! - 03/02/2025 12:57
- Attack on South Sudan cattle camps kills 35 - 03/02/2025 12:46
- في صفقة مثيرة.. الإمارات تشتري نفط الجنوب في باطن الأرض لمدة 20 عامًا - 03/02/2025 12:42
- South Sudan: Can oil production save the economy? - 30/01/2025 19:27
- 20 oil workers and crew die in South Sudan plane crash - 30/01/2025 19:20
Random articles (all categories):
- S. Sudan's Political Future Uncertain Ahead of Independence Day - 04/07/2014 17:53
- Exclusive: South Sudan finance ministry bypassed in multi-million dollar tractor deal - 27/04/2015 11:58
- Aid group: Child malnutrition rises in South Sudan - 14/07/2014 18:00
- South Sudan president seeks support in China - Beaver County Times - 24/04/2012 04:10
- A Reply To A Letter By The Title "Discrimination Against Balanda Community By Azande In Tambura County" - 20/08/2020 11:24
Popular articles:
- Who is the darkest person in the world, according to Guinness World Record? - 25/10/2022 02:34 - Read 68988 times
- No oil in troubled waters - 25/03/2014 15:02 - Read 22366 times
- School exam results in South Sudan show decline - 01/04/2012 17:58 - Read 21568 times
- Top 10 weakest currency exchange rates in Africa in 2023 - 19/07/2023 00:24 - Read 19270 times
- NDSU student from South Sudan receives scholarship - In-Forum - 29/09/2012 01:44 - Read 19214 times