Millions of Ebola dollars going missing as virus spreads, medical charity warns
Summary
Médecins Sans Frontières warned that hundreds of millions of dollars allocated to the Ebola response in the Democratic Republic of Congo are not reaching patients and frontline workers. The charity says the outbreak remains out of control, with more than 5,400 deaths and 11,000 infections reported since May; it called for stronger financial oversight and better support for response teams.Key Facts
- MSF reported that some health workers were unpaid or untrained, ambulances lacked fuel, and frontline teams lacked supplies.
- Africa CDC said last month that $700 million of the $962 million disbursed to organisations carrying out the Ebola response was unaccounted for; its chief said it was too early to call this embezzlement.
- MSF said contact tracing and disease surveillance remained weak, and that two-thirds of deaths were occurring in communities rather than treatment centres.
- MSF said North Kivu's response was too slow and Haut-Uélé was overlooked, while health facilities in both provinces lacked essential supplies and systems.
- British epidemiologist Neil Ferguson said more than half of cases were going undetected and predicted the outbreak could last another year, Reuters reported.
- The outbreak is caused by the Bundibugyo species of Ebola and has spread beyond DR Congo, with cases reported in Kenya, Uganda and Nigeria.
- Kenya discharged its last known Ebola patient on Wednesday, according to the article.
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