The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) has explained why no approved vaccine is available for the current Ebola outbreak spreading across parts of Africa.
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The Director-General of Africa CDC, Dr Jean Kaseya, said the lack of an available vaccine reflected how international partners viewed Ebola as an African problem.
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Speaking during an interview on Channels Television’s The Morning Brief on Thursday, Kaseya argued that vaccines would already be available if the outbreak were occurring in Western countries.
The current outbreak is caused by the Bundibugyo virus, a rare strain of Ebola for which there is no approved vaccine or specific treatment.
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Kaseya explained that a licensed vaccine, Ervebo, is available for the Zaire strain of Ebola, but it does not provide an approved vaccine option for the Bundibugyo strain.
He said Africa CDC had initiated clinical trials of new vaccines, including a candidate developed in Egypt to target the Bundibugyo virus.
According to Kaseya, the outbreak has spread across three African regions, making it the most geographically widespread Ebola outbreak in history. He also cited more than 9,500 infections and approximately 4,600 deaths in the Democratic Republic of Congo alone.
Nigeria confirmed its first case on Tuesday in a woman who arrived from Uganda on October 3. Since the case was identified, 44 contacts have been placed under monitoring.
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