Attachments
This Weekly Bulletin focuses on public health emergencies occurring in the WHO African region. This week’s articles cover:
Measles in Liberia
Measles in Zambia
Floods in the Republic of Congo
For each of these events, a brief description, followed by public health measures implemented and an interpretation of the situation is provided.
A table is provided at the end of the bulletin with information on all new and ongoing public health events currently being monitored in the region, as well as recent events that have been controlled and closed.
Major issues and challenges include:
-
The magnitude and spread of the protracted measles outbreak in Liberia suggest a possible suboptimal measles vaccine coverage throughout the country. The suboptimal coverage could have resulted from COVID-19 pandemic-related impacts on routine health services provision, underlying gaps in immunization program coverage, or both. The Ministry of Health in addition to other measures, responded by sending out a rapid response team to contain the outbreak and working with partners to conduct operational research to understand the drivers of the outbreak.
-
Since 2021, Zambia has been facing recurring measles outbreaks, initially concentrated in specific provinces but now affecting all ten provinces of the country, including both urban and rural areas. The National Public Health Emergency Operations Centre has been activated with ongoing measures including active surveillance, contact tracing, and community sensitization. However, challenges persist, such as limited resources for cross-border collaboration and community active case searches, insufficient capacity for measles data audits, and inadequate support for community-based efforts. These constraints impede effective coordination, surveillance, and response, potentially prolonging the outbreak and increasing its spread.