The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) warned on Wednesday that insecurity is threatening efforts to contain Ebola in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Speaking in Bunia on World Humanitarian Day, OCHA Deputy Head of Office Fadwa Benmbarek said the risks facing aid and health workers had become particularly serious during the Ebola outbreak.
“Protecting humanitarian and health workers is not only a legal obligation, but it is also a moral one,” Benmbarek said.
According to OCHA, 293 security incidents affecting humanitarian personnel have been recorded since January, with eight aid workers killed. Nearly half of the security incidents affecting aid workers in June were linked to Ebola.
“These incidents compromise not only the safety of the teams, but also our collective capacity to reach communities and contain this epidemic,” Benmbarek stressed.
UN Senior Ebola Coordinator Julien Harneis called for the protection of those on the frontline, including nurses, community health workers, ambulance drivers, NGO and UN staff and government personnel.
“These are the people who are there for us. We must respect them and we should respect the buildings and the health centres and hospitals that are essential for everyone’s well-being,” Harneis added.
The UN has previously warned that violence and insecurity in eastern DRC have restricted access to Ebola treatment centres and surrounding communities. In July, several humanitarian partners temporarily relocated staff to Bunia after an incident involving armed men near an Ebola treatment centre in Nyankunde, Ituri province.
DR Congo has faced repeated Ebola outbreaks since the virus was first identified in the country in 1976, with insecurity, population displacement and limited access to healthcare continuing to complicate efforts to stop transmission.
Source: Viory
