Global health leaders, including a number of leading South African health professionals, have signed an open letter to governments in which they urge “an end to the cycle of panic and neglect” in response to disease outbreaks like Ebola, which they have labelled as a “preventable disaster”, writes Kerry Cullinan for Health Policy Watch.
Thus far, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda have recorded 608 confirmed cases and 102 deaths linked to the fast-moving spread of the Bundibugyo virus, and the letter’s authors called for governments to “make decisions that will prevent and stop infectious disease outbreaks” like this one.
The letter is headlined by the four bodies involved in critical oversight of global pandemics: The Independent Panel for Pandemic Preparedness and Response, Global Preparedness Monitoring Board, Panel for a Global Public Health Convention and the Global Council on Inequality, Aids and Pandemics.
Among the more than 100 signatories are Shabir Madhi, Professor of Vaccinology, Wits; Professor Helen Rees, Wits RHI; Shingai Machingaidze, STEG Co-Chair, International Pandemic Preparedness Secretariat, South Africa; Petro Terblanche, CEO, Afrigen Biologics, South Africa; Sinead Delany-Moretlwe, Professor of Global Health and Infectious Diseases, Wits; Lee Fairlie, Director Maternal and Child Health, Associate Professor, Wits RHI, and Prof Edward Nicol, Senior Specialist Scientist, South African Medical Research Council.
Not ready for next pandemic
The letter notes that despite 22m people dying during the Covid-19 pandemic, the subsequent mpox, hantavirus and Ebola outbreaks have shown that the world is “not ready for a new pandemic threat”, pointing to the stalled Pandemic Agreement talks, the lack of new national outbreak and pandemic plans, and the world’s failure to “come close” to meeting the $15bn per year needed for pandemic prevention and preparedness.
“There was a pledge to have diagnostics, vaccines and treatments ready within 100 days of a new threat being identified (100 Days Mission) – and while there has been progress, for Bundibugyo, that will not happen,” the letter points out.
“At a time when humanity can sequence pathogens in hours, develop vaccines in months, and deploy artificial intelligence across entire economies, the world already has many of the tools it needs.
“The question is whether leaders will choose to invest in and use them. We can no longer accept this cycle of panic and neglect.”
UN meeting on pandemics
The upcoming United Nations High-Level Meeting on Pandemic Preparedness in September has been set for the last Friday of the UN General Assembly week, and the authors plead for world leaders to finalise and ratify the Pandemic Agreement “as rapidly as possible and implement it”. The next round of talks begins again on 6 July.
They also call for “fair, predictable, and accessible financing for sustained prevention and preparedness investment, including for the 100 Days Mission, and for rapid emergency deployment when threats emerge”.
Meanwhile, the lack of resources, access and community trust is severely hampering attempts to end the Ebola outbreak in the DRC and Uganda, according to a media release by the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention on Tuesday.
On Monday, 45 new cases had been confirmed, all in the DRC’s Ituri province. Uganda’s case load remains at 19, with all cases linked to the DRC outbreak.
The CDC said the response was facing “significant operational constraints”.
“Health facilities in several affected areas are in poor condition and often lack potable water, incinerators, personal protective equipment and decontamination supplies,” it said, while bad roads, insecurity and a shortage of ambulances and hearses were slowing access and response operations.
“Staffing pressures are also growing, with some health workers unpaid or without incentives.”
Describing community trust as a “critical challenge”, Africa CDC said that misinformation and a viral audio message after the death of a doctor had fuelled people’s “fear and distrust of treatment centres”.
Misinformation ranges from disbelief that Ebola exists to fears that people are being deliberately infected.
The European Union Commission (EU) announced on Monday that it has committed €11.5m to support Africa CDC’s response to the outbreak.
This includes €6.5m to strengthen the Africa Pathogen Genomics Initiative, to help equip frontline teams train healthcare workers and improve surveillance through diagnostics and in-kind contribution of of testing equipment, including rapid diagnostic devices and lab test kits, worth €5m, to be deployed quickly where they are most needed.
Dr Jean Kaseya, Director General of Africa CDC, described the partnership with the EU as the type of partnership the continent needs. “We want to assure you we’ll use this money to make impact…and to ensure that humanitarian corridors will be considered in our response. We don’t want to see, again, health workers dying because we are not providing necessary support,” he said.
See more from MedicalBrief archives:
Responders struggle to contain Ebola as outbreak surges
Hantavirus in Africa – why scientists are worried
Global pandemic accord to be adopted
Global call for more pathogen research to prepare for next pandemic