WHO boss in Rwanda to see firsthand country's Marburg response
Saturday, October 19, 2024
(L-R) WHO Director-General, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus meets with Minister of Health Dr Sabin Nsanzimana and WHO’s Country Representative to Rwanda, Dr. Brian Chirombo in Kigali. COURTESY

The Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO), Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, arrived in Rwanda on Friday, October 18, to see firsthand the ongoing Marburg response and pledge WHO's continued support to all responders.

"Looking forward to meeting with the health workers, colleagues and the government officials, as we continue our close collaboration to stop the outbreak," he noted in a post on X.

ALSO READ: Rwanda hoping to see &039;zero new Marburg cases, deaths for several days'

The trend in managing the current Marburg virus outbreak in Rwanda is "positive" and health authorities hope to report no new cases and deaths for several days, Health Minister Dr Sabin Nsanzimana said on Thursday, October 17, at a virtual press briefing on Marburg and Mpox outbreaks in Africa, which was hosted by Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC).

Rwanda confirmed the Marburg outbreak on September 27.

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Dr Nsanzimana said that no new case of the virus had been recorded in the last three days.

"We believe that this ring vaccination [for the close contacts of confirmed cases] has played a big role. And also, we believe that the intensive work being done on ground is also helping to capture all the cases and their contacts,” he said.