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🇳🇬 Nigeria /Health & Science

Ebola spreading faster than response in DRC, UN warns

From The Punch · () English

Summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

News Named sources Ongoing story
  • The UN says an Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo is spreading faster than containment efforts, with 6,100 confirmed cases and 2,950 deaths reported by Monday.
  • UN relief chief Tom Fletcher called for more political commitment, humanitarian access and international financing, citing a $1.1 billion funding shortfall.
  • The UN has allocated more than $57 million to response and preparedness efforts in the DRC and neighboring countries.

The United Nations has warned that Ebola is spreading faster than the response in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, as reported deaths approach 3,000.

UN Emergency Relief Coordinator Tom Fletcher said the outbreak was expanding despite a major increase in efforts by humanitarian agencies and Congolese authorities. DRC authorities had reported more than 6,100 confirmed cases and 2,950 deaths by Monday, including more than 5,000 infections in Ituri province.

The response is growing and has been scaled up, but the virus is moving faster.

— Tom FletcherThe UN emergency relief coordinator described the pace of the outbreak compared with containment efforts.

“The response is growing and has been scaled up, but the virus is moving faster,” Fletcher said. “And unless we scale up urgently, more lives will be lost and the threat will grow.”

Ebola spreads through direct contact with an infected person’s blood or bodily fluids, as well as contaminated materials. Early detection and isolation remain central to stopping transmission. Fletcher said the response also requires sustained political commitment, unrestricted humanitarian access and much more international financing.

And unless we scale up urgently, more lives will be lost and the threat will grow.

— Tom FletcherHe urged governments and aid partners to expand the response immediately.

“We have the experience, the tools and extraordinary people risking their lives to stop this epidemic. What we need now is political will, access and resources,” he said. Insecurity and weak infrastructure are making it harder for aid workers to reach affected communities.

A funding gap of about $1.1 billion is limiting surveillance, treatment, community mobilisation and cross-border preparedness. Fletcher said his agency had provided more than $57 million from the UN Central Emergency Response Fund for response and preparedness in the DRC and neighboring countries. The UN says the tools to contain Ebola already exist, but delayed funding, restricted access and weak coordination could allow transmission to continue outpacing containment.

We have the experience, the tools and extraordinary people risking their lives to stop this epidemic. What we need now is political will, access and resources.

— Tom FletcherHe said the main remaining needs were political commitment, humanitarian access and funding.
About this summary

Originally published by The Punch. Summarized and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

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