The Ebola epidemic claimed the lives of more than11,300 people and infected over 28,500. At the height of the outbreak, the bodies of victims piled up in the streets of towns and cities that were overwhelmed and ill equipped to cope with the scale and speed of transmission.
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“Governments will need resources to help communities prevent infection, detect potential cases and respond rapidly and effectively”, Ban Ki-moon added.
“Today, as Liberia marks the end of Ebola transmission-following Guinea’s and Sierra Leone’s declarations on December 29 and November 7, 2015, respectively, these three nations can take pride in their perseverance and commitment to reach this critical milestone”, the dispatch quoted Kim as saying. “The risk of re-introduction of infection is diminishing as the virus gradually clears from the survivor population, but we still anticipate more flare-ups and must be prepared for them”.
The WHO on Friday confirmed the new Ebola case in Sierra Leone but did not immediately provide details or say whether there was a risk of others being infected.
The WHO has faced fierce and sustained criticism over its handling of the crisis: the delay in sounding the alarm slowed the deployment of medical personnel, protective gear and medicines – and prompt calls for the organisation to be stripped of its role in declaring disease outbreaks as worldwide emergencies – and the WHO was found to have toned down its own admissions of failure.
Their approach, Graaff said, is that “it’s a problem, a big problem, it’s going to affect us again, but we know how to handle it”.
Liberia was first declared free of Ebola transmission in May 2015, but the virus was re-introduced twice since then, with the latest flare-up in November.
Hilde de Clerck, a doctor with Medecins Sans Frontieres who has assisted with five Ebola outbreaks, said vigilance was crucial to prevent the re-emergence of the disease, for which there is no proven drug treatment, although researchers have developed a vaccine. “We keep moving on with our surveillance system”. Forty-two days represents two full incubation cycles of Ebola, and is used as a standard timeline to judge whether the disease’s spread has been halted.
The WHO came under fire for its sluggish response to the epidemic, which local healthcare systems were woefully under-equipped to handle.
“Ebola has been a terrifying experience for children”, said UNICEF’s Regional Director for West and Central Africa Manuel Fontaine in a statement.
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Margaret Chan, said the outbreak, which had worldwide dimensions, had a crushing impact on health care management, national economies and global travel.
