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Africa

Africa: Strengthening Partnerships to Combat Disease Outbreaks in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC)

todayFebruary 13, 2024 1

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Kinshasa — The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) conducted a high-level mission from 9 to 10 February 2024 in Kinshasa, the Democratic Republic of Congo. The mission aimed to support government health initiatives through enhanced partnerships and collaboration in addressing emerging and endemic diseases.

Recognizing the vital role of respectful and action-oriented partnerships outlined in the new public health order, Africa CDC and the Ministry of Health convened high-level partners to rally support for preventing and controlling monkeypox and cholera in DRC. The meeting, held on February 10, 2024, in Kinshasa, focused on the current epidemiological situation of monkeypox and cholera, identified response challenges, and mobilized partners’ support for government efforts.

H.E Dr Jean Kaseya, Director General of Africa CDC, highlighted Africa CDC’s support for cholera and Monkeypox response efforts, including deploying experts, training local health workers on surveillance and one health approaches, providing diagnostics, and supporting the genomics initiatives. However, cognizant of the increasing trend and risk of disease spread, the Director General underscored the need for renewed commitment of all partners and heightened response efforts to prevent further spread and control the outbreaks.

Through this meeting, partners had an opportunity to review and approve the action plans for response and further renewed their commitment to supporting the Government of DRC in the fight against Mpox and cholera.

Dr Roger Kamba, the Minister of Health in DRC, acknowledged Africa CDC’s pivotal role, citing empirical evidence that DRC bears a significant burden of monkeypox cases in Africa. “I am establishing a task force to facilitate the coordination of all partners involved in the response efforts,” he said.

From January 2023 to January 31, 2024, Africa recorded 266,436 cases and 4,419 deaths of cholera, with the DRC reporting over 16% of cases. Over the same period, Africa reported 16,549 Mpox cases and 853 deaths, with the DRC reporting 97.5% of cases.

More partnerships

Additionally, in reinforcing cooperation with local partners, the Africa CDC and Soins de Santé Primaire en Milieu Rural (SANRU) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to foster collaboration and cooperation between the two organizations. The signing ceremony marked a pivotal moment in advancing healthcare initiatives in the DRC and beyond.

The Africa CDC and SANRU have identified several key areas for collaboration, including advocating for, developing, and strengthening the capacities of Primary Healthcare (PHC) with paid Community Health Worker (CHW) Programs, deploying Risk Communication and Community Engagement (RCCE) activities, facilitating the integration of community health worker programs into national health systems, and partnering to achieve gender equality and autonomy of women and girls in accessing health services.

“The signing of this agreement institutes our shared commitment to accelerate the achievement of universal health coverage and enhance health security in DRC and Africa. By promoting community health programs, supporting multi-sectoral interventions, and building a critical mass of community health workers, we aim to address gender inequalities in access to health, ultimately improving health outcomes for all,” said H.E Dr Jean Kaseya, Director General of Africa CDC.

During the same mission, discussions on improving public health decision-making, policies and practices leveraging locally generated and context-relevant evidence with Prof. Jean Jacques Muyembe, the Director General of the National Institute for Biomedical Research (INRB) of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) were held. Discussions centred on the mechanisms of strengthening research and clinical trials related to monkeypox.