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VENO tv: FOREIGN NEWS EBOLA SPREADS TO NEW PROVINCE IN DR CONGO AS HEALTH WORKERS STRIKE OVER UNPAID WAGES Contact tracing becomes increasingly difficult among displaced populations
Date: 15-08-26

By Kayode Adoide

The Ebola outbreak ravaging the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has spread to a sixth province, raising fresh concerns about the country's ability to contain the rapidly expanding health emergency.
Authorities confirmed Ebola in Bas-Uele Province after an infected person died in Buta, the provincial capital. The development means the outbreak has now affected six provinces.
The outbreak is caused by the relatively rare Bundibugyo virus, a species of Ebola. WHO earlier confirmed that the outbreak began in Ituri Province and has been spreading amid insecurity, population movements and a severe humanitarian crisis.
HEALTH WORKERS DOWN TOOLS
Efforts to contain the disease have suffered another setback as some frontline health workers have gone on strike over months of unpaid wages. Treatment centres have reportedly been affected, while exhausted workers complain of inadequate staffing, protective equipment and other resources.
The outbreak has already recorded more than 4,600 confirmed cases and over 2,100 deaths, according to the latest figures reported by Congolese authorities.
CONTACT TRACING BECOMES DIFFICULT
One of the greatest challenges facing health authorities is contact tracing. Large numbers of people have been displaced by armed conflict, while mining activities and other population movements make it difficult for health teams to identify and monitor everyone who may have come into contact with infected persons.
WHO has previously warned that the outbreak is unfolding in a complex humanitarian environment involving highly mobile and displaced populations, insecurity and disruption to surveillance and response operations.
Reports indicate that 60–70 per cent of new infections are being detected among people who were not already being monitored as known contacts, highlighting serious gaps in surveillance.
OUTBREAK LINKED TO NEW ANIMAL-TO-HUMAN TRANSMISSION
Genetic analysis indicates that the current outbreak likely resulted from a new animal-to-human transmission event, rather than being a continuation of an earlier human transmission chain.
The situation remains particularly worrying because there is currently no licensed vaccine or specific approved treatment for the Bundibugyo strain, although vaccine and treatment candidates are being tested.

Health authorities and international partners are racing against time to strengthen surveillance, restore effective contact tracing and prevent the outbreak from spreading further within Congo and across international borders.

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