WHO says Ebola outbreak risk is high in DR Congo and region, low globally

GENEVA: The World Health Organisation said on Wednesday that the Ebola outbreak centred in the Democratic Republic of Congo poses a high risk at the national and regional levels, while the threat worldwide remains low.

WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said 51 cases had so far been confirmed in the DRC, in the eastern provinces of Ituri and North Kivu, but added that the overall scale of the outbreak in the country was larger. He also said Uganda had reported two confirmed cases in the capital Kampala, including one death, while a US national working in the DRC had tested positive and been transferred to Germany.

Addressing a press conference at the WHO headquarters in Geneva, Tedros warned that the outbreak carried a serious risk of expanding further and causing more fatalities. He said there were nearly 600 suspected cases and 139 suspected deaths in addition to the confirmed infections, and added that the figures were expected to rise because the virus had likely been circulating for some time before the outbreak was detected.

He said the WHO’s assessment remained that the epidemic posed a high risk within the affected country and surrounding region, but a low risk globally.

On Sunday, Tedros declared the outbreak a public health emergency of international concern, which is the second-highest alert level under the International Health Regulations and triggers emergency action in countries around the world.

Emergency committee assessment

The WHO emergency committee met on Tuesday to review the situation and concluded that the outbreak did not currently meet the threshold for a pandemic emergency.

Committee chair Lucille Blumberg told reporters from South Africa that the conditions for a public health emergency of international concern had been met, but not those required for a pandemic emergency.

WHO technical officer on viral haemorrhagic fevers Anais Legand said investigations were continuing to determine how long Ebola had been spreading in eastern DRC. She said the scale of the outbreak suggested it may have started a couple of months ago, though inquiries were still under way.

Legand said the immediate priority was to break chains of transmission through contact tracing and by isolating and caring for suspected and confirmed patients.

Response to US criticism

The WHO comments came after US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Tuesday that the agency had been a little late in identifying the deadly outbreak.

Asked about the criticism, Tedros said the remarks may reflect a lack of understanding of how the International Health Regulations work and of the respective responsibilities of the WHO and other bodies. He said the organisation supports countries in responding to outbreaks rather than replacing them.

The report also noted that President Donald Trump, in one of his first acts after returning to office last year, initiated a US withdrawal from the WHO and had sharply criticised the agency over its handling of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The WHO’s latest assessment comes as health authorities continue to investigate the origins and spread of the outbreak in eastern Congo, while monitoring cases reported beyond the DRC.

Speaking at the Geneva briefing, Tedros said:

WHO assesses the risk of the epidemic as high at the national and regional levels, and low at the global level

He also said:

There are several factors that warrant serious concern about the potential for further spread and further deaths