The 2018-2020 Ebola Outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo: A Better Response Had Been Achieved Through Inter-State Coordination in Africa

Raoul Emeric Guetiya Wadoum; Stephen Sevalie; Antonella Minutolo; Andrew Clarke; Gianluca Russo; Vittorio Colizzi; Maurizio Mattei; Carla Montesano

doi:10.2147/RMHP.S327616

The 2018-2020 Ebola Outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo: A Better Response Had Been Achieved Through Inter-State Coordination in Africa

Risk Manag Healthc Policy. 2021 Dec 10:14:4923-4930. doi: 10.2147/RMHP.S327616. eCollection 2021.

Authors

Raoul Emeric Guetiya Wadoum¹, Stephen Sevalie², Antonella Minutolo³, Andrew Clarke^{4

5}, Gianluca Russo⁶, Vittorio Colizzi⁷, Maurizio Mattei⁸, Carla Montesano⁸

Affiliations

¹ Department of Public Health, Microbiology and Immunology, Ernest Bai Koroma University of Science and Technology, Makeni, Sierra Leone.
² 34th Regimental Military Hospital, The Republic of Sierra Leone Armed Forces, Freetown, Sierra Leone.
³ Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy.
⁴ Global Programs Division, Save the Children United Kingdom, London, UK.
⁵ Division of Health Research, Lancaster University, Lancaster, UK.
⁶ Department of Public Health and Infectious Diseases, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy.
⁷ Department of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Science and Technology, Evangelical University of Cameroon, Bandjoun, Cameroon.
⁸ Department of Biology, School of Mathematics, Physics and Natural Sciences, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy.

Abstract

The Ebola virus disease, formerly known as Ebola hemorrhagic fever, is a severe and often fatal zoonosis in humans. The 2013-2016 West African Ebola outbreak had distinctive characteristics, and it was the largest and most complex epidemic since the virus discovery in 1976. Although the 2018-2020 Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo had many similarities, there were additional challenges due to the presence of armed rebel groups at the epicenters of the epidemic. Despite these challenges, the extraordinary commitment of the World Health Organization (WHO) regional office for Africa, in collaboration with Africa Union (AU) member states through the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), and WHO's prompt declaration of a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) shepherded an effective coordinated response to contain the epidemic. Learning from previous Ebola virus epidemics and the current Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, the AU member states should strengthen inter-state coordination towards the development and implementation of a preparedness and readiness plan which will enable the continent to build and sustain resilient capacities to prevent, detect, and respond to future outbreaks following the International Health Regulations (IHR).

Keywords: Africa CDC; Africa Union; COVID-19; Ebola virus disease; United Nations; WHO.