The European Commission is procuring diagnostic tests to help respond to the ongoing Bundibugyo Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The tests, worth €2.5 million in total, will be donated to the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention.
With the support of the European Health and Digital Executive Agency, the Commission will provide €2.5 million worth of rapid molecular point-of-care tests and testing instruments to the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The first deliveries will begin in August. In parallel, a further agreement in collaboration with the World Health Organization for additional tests is in preparation.
Commissioner for Crisis Management Hadja Lahbib said – This action directly follows my visit to Ituri, where our partners made clear that faster and stronger diagnostic capacity is urgently needed. In an Ebola outbreak, every hour matters. These tests will help detect cases earlier, get patients into care sooner, and prevent the virus from spreading further. Europe is turning what we heard on the ground into concrete support, working together with Africa CDC and the WHO.
The Commission response to the outbreak has been coordinated from day one with Member States, international bodies and partners. According to the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), the outbreak had recorded 3,381 confirmed cases and 1,489 confirmed deaths in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. In Uganda, there have been 20 confirmed cases and two confirmed deaths.
The Commission has mobilised €493 million euros in emergency aid, vaccines, treatment and health security in the Great Lakes and Uganda region. The ECDC currently assesses the risk of Ebola to people in Europe as very low.
