The World Health Organisation (WHO) chief on Saturday called on communities in the centre of the Congo’s latest Ebola outbreak to play a central role in fighting the disease.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus arrived in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) on Thursday to coordinate the response to the Ebola outbreak, for which 1,028 suspected cases had been recorded by Friday, according to Congolese authorities.
“The communities understand the problems better and they know the solution as well,” Ghebreyesus told reporters after arriving in Bunia, the provincial capital of Ituri, a hotspot of the ongoing Ebola outbreak.”Yes, the international community is involved, under the leadership of the government of DRC. At the same time, community ownership is important. That’s why we are here to discuss with the community to see how the response is running and, if there are challenges, to help,” Tedros said.