DRC begins vaccinating against new Ebola outbreak

The Democratic Republic of Congo began on Sunday a vaccine programme against a fresh Ebola epidemic, which has killed 28 people in the country since late August.

A first load of 400 doses against the disease was handed out in the hotspot town of Bulape, in the central Kasai province, the World Health Organization (WHO) said.

The last outbreak of Ebola in the vast Central African nation was three years ago and killed six people. Its deadliest, lasting from 2018 to 2020, left 2,300 dead out of 3,500 people known to have been infected.

According to the latest toll from the Congolese health authorities on Sunday, 28 deaths and 81 confirmed cases have been registered since the first confirmed infection of a pregnant 34-year-old woman on August 20.

Priority given to those at risk

The WHO believes the fatality rate from this epidemic, which was declared in early September, to be around 35%.

The first shipment of vaccines was handed out to those most at risk from the virus, including frontline health workers and close contacts of infected people, the WHO statement said.