Gates Foundation has committed more than Ksh1.94 billion ($15 million) in emergency funding to strengthen the Ebola response in Uganda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo as health authorities race to contain the deadly outbreak.
In a statement, the Foundation said it intends to channel most of the resources directly to affected countries and vulnerable communities to improve rapid response efforts on the ground.
Additionally, the Foundation will allocate Ksh647 million ($5 million) to the Africa CDC to support regional coordination, rapid deployment teams and cross-border surveillance. Another Ksh647 million will go to the World Health Organization Regional Office for Africa for frontline operational support in affected countries.
Furthermore, the Foundation will direct additional funding to World Health Organization headquarters to strengthen rapid procurement systems, improve diagnostics and boost logistics for critical response supplies.
Meanwhile, the DRC declared an Ebola outbreak on May 15 linked to the Bundibugyo strain, which currently has no approved vaccine or treatment.
In its latest update released on Saturday, the Congolese health ministry reported 204 deaths across three provinces from nearly 900 suspected cases.
At the same time, Uganda confirmed three new Ebola infections, raising the total number of recorded cases to five. Consequently, the WHO warned that the virus could spread rapidly if authorities fail to intensify containment measures.
The Gates Foundation has therefore urged governments and health agencies to prioritize rapid detection, strengthen public health interventions, protect frontline workers and improve coordinated action to stop further transmission.
“Our thoughts are with the families who have lost loved ones, the communities facing uncertainty, and the frontline health workers, laboratory teams, responders and community volunteers working under extremely difficult conditions to protect lives,” part of the statement read.
Meanwhile, the United Kingdom has announced up to £20 million (about Ksh3.4 billion) in additional funding to support efforts aimed at containing the outbreak.
The UK said the funds will support the WHO, the UN, international agencies and NGO partners currently responding to the health emergency in the region.
