LIVE: WHO chief and experts holds News conference on the Ebola outbreak

Added: 2026-06-03

[00:00:31]recording in progress.

[00:02:07]Greetings from the WHO headquarters in Geneva. My name is Amna and I welcome you to our press conference on Ebola disease caused by bundjo virus. to update you on the situation and to answer your questions. We have the experts here in the room and a number of speakers are joining us online from uh Buna in the DRC.

[00:02:33]Uh in the room today we also have the UN Geneva credited journalists in addition to the reporters who have joined us uh online. Warm welcome to you all. Uh after I introduce the speakers, I'm going to go to the director general for his opening remarks and I will then open the floor uh to your questions. We will start with the journalists in the room and we'll move on then to the reporters online.

[00:02:59]As always uh Dr. Dr. Tedros, who director general is with us today and we also have online Dr. Muhammad Yakub Janabi, regional director for WHO uh Afro. Welcome to you both. Um in uh joining us from Buna in the DSC speakers online we have a group of experts starting with Dr. Chuazu.

[00:03:43]Bank fixed deposit investment Dr. Vazi Mory who is the lead ad interim for the R&D blueprint in the office of the WHO chief scientist.

[00:04:04]Um with this I'm going to hand over to Dr. Pedros for his introductory remarks.

[00:04:13]>> Thank you. Thank you, Amna.

[00:04:16]Uh, good afternoon to everyone in the room and good morning, good afternoon, and good evening to those joining us online.

[00:04:26]Yesterday, I returned from a visit to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, including to the epicenter of the Ebola outbreak in the province of Iti.

[00:04:37]I met with political leaders, senior health officials, ambassadors, partners, who colleagues, frontline responders, community and faith leaders, women's groups, business leaders, traditional healers, and and more. Of course, meetings also with our partners. I'm very encouraged by the level of commitment I saw everywhere I went. What I saw gave me hope. Although challenges remain in DRC, 344 cases have been confirmed, including 60 deaths in 24 health zones across three different provinces, Ituri, North Ku, and South Ku. The number of suspected cases has now been reduced to 116 from over 1,000 last week. As we work through the backlog, either confirming them or ruling them out. In Uganda, there is one confirmed death and 15 confirmed cases, including a Congalles resident who traveled to the United Arab Emirates and then to Uganda.

[00:05:53]WHO is working with public health authorities in Uganda and the UAE to gather additional information, assess the risk of exposure during travel and to facilitate contact tracing. We thank both the UAE and Uganda for their collaboration to mitigate the risks related to this case.

[00:06:14]In addition, a US citizen who was infected in the RC is still receiving care in Germany.

[00:06:22]WH's risk assessment remains unchanged.

[00:06:25]Very high at the national level, high at the regional level, and low at the global level. The outbreak had a big head head start, and we're still behind, but under the leadership of the government of DRC, we're catching up. In Bunya, there are now three treatment centers with a capacity of 80 beds and there are also treatment units in Mangualu, Ra, Raara, Benny, GMA and Bukavu and more are on the way.

[00:07:02]So far, six people have recovered in the RC and two in Uganda, showing that people can survive Ebola if they have access to care and go to health facilities as soon as they show symptoms.

[00:07:18]But we still face several challenges.

[00:07:22]First, testing.

[00:07:24]One of our key priorities is to scale up laboratory and diagnostic capacity to reduce delays in case confirmation and support faster response decisions.

[00:07:36]Accordingly, we're working to decentralize laboratory and diagnostic capacity in priority locations including Mangualu, Beni, Aru, Yakundi and Chia. We also need to scale up readiness including surveillance, laboratory diagnostics and access to health services in neighboring provinces and countries. Second, contact tracing in the DRC is not yet where it needs to be. Only about 45% of contacts have been followed up. And to get ahead of the outbreak, we need to get that number up to above 90%.

[00:08:20]Insecurity, displacement, and mobile populations make contact tracing especially difficult.

[00:08:28]Third, blanket travel restrictions imposed by some countries are disrupting supply chains and hindering the response.

[00:08:38]WHO recommends exit screening at airports, ports, and border crossings to prevent the exportation of cases and contacts. We ask countries that have imposed blanket travel restrictions to lift them. Fours, community mistrust is a serious barrier. Some community leaders told me that they believe Ebola is not real. Building trust with the communities is therefore critical to bringing the outbreak under control. And fifth, as you know, we're fighting this outbreak without vaccines or therapeutics.

[00:09:15]WHO and partners are working on advancing clinical trials as quickly as possible.

[00:09:22]Today, I convene for the second time the principles of the interior medical counter measures network to align on three priorities.

[00:09:31]First, increasing support for decentralized diagnostics.

[00:09:36]Second, mobilizing immediate support for the affected countries to lead clinical trials in cooperation with communities.

[00:09:45]And third, accelerating the investment to support all pillars of the response.

[00:09:51]Although vaccines and therapeutics would be a big help, the key to ending this outbreak is not biomedical.

[00:10:00]It's leadership, ownership, partnership and trust.

[00:10:05]Government leadership, community ownership, a strong partnership between the many actors involved, working with one budget, one plan and one report and building trust in the affected communities.

[00:10:22]We also need to remember that Ebola is only one health threat among many that these communities face.

[00:10:30]One of the things I heard from the community leaders is that they worry that the response to Ebola may take resources away from the health and humanitarian services they rely on for their many other needs.

[00:10:45]Our ultimate measure of success is not whether we stop this outbreak.

[00:10:50]We will. The government of DRC has extensive experience with Ebola and has stopped 16 previous outbreaks.

[00:11:00]It's just a matter of how quickly we can do it. The real measure of success is what we do to prevent the Athens outbreak in the 19s. If the people of Italy survive Ebola only to die from malaria, malnutrition or pneumonia or diaral disease or HIV or diabetes, we have not really helped them. For now, WHO and our partners are committed to ending this outbreak under the leadership of the government.

[00:11:34]And when it does end, we will remain equally committed to supporting the government and the local communities to build the health and humanitarian services they need and deserve. Amna, back to you.

[00:11:50]>> Thank you. Thank you very much. Uh DG.

[00:11:52]Uh before uh we open uh the pod the uh floor for questions, I want to introduce our experts at the podium. Uh we have got to the right of Dr. DG of Dr. Tedros we have Anise Leand who is the technical officer for high threat pathogens at the WHO health emergencies program and Dr. Terza Zakaria who is the unit head for risk reduction and humanitarian operations at the WH health emergencies program. Um we are ready to take your questions. Uh, Anes Pedro IFP, over to you, please.

[00:12:36]>> Yes. Hi, thank you. Um, a a question to to who can answer that question? Uh I was wondering if you could tell us um how much access do you have uh on the test that actually can detect the the strain this particular strain and if there is any test shortages and in general what are the the the most crucial need that that you have on the material on the personal uh either any shortages in general and um if you could also say what is the number of suspected Ebola deaths that have been uh uh finded so far. Thank you.

[00:13:22]>> Uh take thank you. Thank you Anes for the first part of your questions. Uh let us go to Dr. Marie Roselin Biser who Afro regional emergency director at interim and incident manager. Uh Mari Roselin.

[00:13:43]Thank you for giving me the floor.

[00:13:46]Oh, can you see me?

[00:13:51]>> Yes. Uh, we can hear you. Go ahead.

[00:13:52]>> Thank you for Okay, thank you. Can you repeat the second the question, please?

[00:14:01]>> An go ahead, please.

[00:14:06]>> So, I repeat the the question, >> the first part. Yes.

[00:14:11]So the my question was about the the in general about the material the personal if you see any shortages uh on the ground on what most uh on the on the most critical needs uh and in particular on the tests uh that can detect this uh this particular strain the bundo um what can you tell us about that?

[00:14:33]Thank you.

[00:14:37]>> Okay, thank you so much for the question. So far WH we have deployed 106 staff in the field and that are distributed in three provinces but at national level we have a lot of infrastructure that has been infected and we are putting those personnel in quarantines that mean there will be a shortage of national personnel in those places and we support the ministry of health in order to take other healthare workers in other provinces in order to replace those personnel in the province.

[00:15:11]Yesterday we have 30 health care professional arriving from Kinshasa in order to support clinical care here. And regarding the test, WH supported the Ministry of Health to have 2,000 tests that has been deployed already in Buna.

[00:15:30]And today a lab a mobile laboratory has been deployed in Mongolu which is the second hospital of this outbreak and you still have a shortage of staff. For example in WH we prevent with the scale up that we are doing we are planning to deploy 278 staff. So so far we are at 38% of what we have a plan and at local level as I say we also have other institution who have also staff for example MSF is wanting a clinical treatment treatment center we have also Alima who has a staff we have a Samaritan purse who have also staff and all of them are coming on to support the government but for the national one as I mentioned we are trying we are supporting the government in order to protect those healthcare personnel. As you know, we have a high number of them that has been infected and we are really putting in place that bure security system in order for those staff to be in a safe place. In the meantime, the service continue to run with our staff coming from other provinces as I mentioned. Over.

[00:16:48]>> Uh thank you Dr. Beliser. Uh and on AFP's second question which is related to suspected deaths and the numbers we will go to uh Dr. Abdi Rahman Mahmud uh the director of health emergency alert and response operations. Dr. Mahmud, >> thank you so much. uh DG has already alluded and explained the current situation what the field team is doing looking clearing the backlog. So the lab so far has done 1,445 tests that cleared almost all the backlog we had and every day as the surveillance improves there are new suspect cases. So today there we have 116 the historical 223 death there's a dedicated team going through that case by case whether it's a probable where is a discarded or unknown. So that work is in going out on the field. So the numbers are there and they have not missing from the overall it's just the work required. At the start of the outbreak, every death was included and now that we have the surge, as Dr. Mary Roselin said, we will be going through that and classifying. They already dead.

[00:18:10]So, we will not be able to collect samples, but we have enough clinical information from the medical record and epidemological investig investigation going on that. So the lab has improved and I think with the decentralization they will be able to do 1,000 uh test a day from the small number with the five labs that will be established by early next week. We in a good shape under the government and like to recognize the INRP team professor MMA and professor Palisid who's leading here from the front. So at this stage, WH with the support of Africa CDC, the scaleup is on track.

[00:18:54]>> Thank you uh Dr. Mahhammud. Uh the next question goes to Katherine Feno France.

[00:19:02]Katherine, >> uh thank you Anna and thank you to the DG and uh his team for briefing on Ebola. I have uh two questions. My first is regarding um the financial need um the the finances needed to increase the testing and care capacity uh as you mentioned that it's needed um DG and also um regarding uh vaccines um how is the research um um going on where is it going on. Uh I read uh some articles talking about uh some uh possibilities to work with Mona.

[00:19:50]Could you give us um some details about that or other companies are um investing also in the research on vaccine and how long it is going to to to take as far as you know. And my last question is regarding uh North Ku GMA.

[00:20:10]um do you have um access to GMA and uh how do you deal with um the region?

[00:20:17]Thank you.

[00:20:20]>> Uh thank you Katherine. Uh let us ask let us start with Dr. Vasil Mory um from the uh R&D blueprint uh to answer your questions on the uh vaccine research and development and then we will we will move on to your other questions. Uh Dr. Marcy, >> thank you. Can you hear me? Okay.

[00:20:46]>> Yes.

[00:20:48]>> Yes. Thank you for the question. So there are three that are now under development specifically for bundio. So this is positive. There is the Oxford vaccine in cooperation with the serum institute of India. Um there is mona as you mentioned. So Madna have announced um since the last press conference fact that they are now actively accelerating development of a bundukio specific vaccine and in addition to that IR is working on a vaccine. The first two in terms of timelines are MNA and Oxford with serum institute of India we're looking at two to three months before the vaccine doses could be available for clinical trial.

[00:21:32]>> This off uh Dr. Janabi.

[00:21:37]>> Yeah, thank you. Can you hear me clearly?

[00:21:40]>> Yes, we can. Please go ahead.

[00:21:44]>> Yeah, thank you. Let me just allow me to start by strongly reinforcing the DG's message about the importance of leadership presence on the ground of course led by the government of DRC and working with all other agencies including CDC and really I have to mention Monosco here who really help us on the transportations in the initial stage and many others who work with us.

[00:22:08]Our visit with DJ Tui was clear demonstration of the WHO solidarity with affected communities, national authorities and our frontline responders. It reassured our teams and partners that this response is being led by agency and visibility and commitment at the highest level as all of us we were there. The DG was there, Chu was there and our red was there. So the visit also delivered very concrete operational gains. DG engaged directly as he said with community leaders, youth, traditional leaders and local influences reinforced reinforcing that community trust is central in controlling this Ebola. We open as DG said a 60 bed treatment center which will have also a pediatric wing specific for pediatric wings. We DG with all the team continue to address the misinformation with very clear effects including clarifying the timing of who outbreak notification. The reopening of commercial flights between Kinshasa and Buna which he really requested the government there is another very important outcome already improving access logistic and continuity of the response. SDG has stated this outbreak is serious but is controllable.

[00:23:32]Transmission is still ongoing and contract tracing coverage as he put it currently around 45. Our target is to reach 95 when we're going to do it in phase. We started at 20 so now we at 45.

[00:23:46]So really there's a light end of the tunnel. in insecurity and localized conflicts continue to affect this coverage and border disruption impacts supply chains. So these challenges are real but they are known and being actively addressed. Our priorities to finish are therefore very clear and fully aligned sustain community engagement protection support for frontline health workers and rapid identification of the cases.

[00:24:15]specifically about um KEU. We have never left KEU as WHO. That's why we even give you the numbers. We have always been there. We are just uh now drawing attention to the current Ebola, but we are not only looking to Ebola. I have to remind everyone 12% of the Melia cases are in the Democratic Republic. So all our surveillance uh points our treatment centers when we do we are going to uh involve diagnosis of malaria and treatment of malaria. So let me finish with consistency implementation of these measures, close collaboration with the national authorities and trust of the communities we are confident but the other thing DG touched but let me emphasize now we are looking on the longer term in order maybe to reduce the chances of getting the 18th and 19th and 20 we have to go down where does Ebola coming from it comes from the animal is a zonotic disease so we have to start to think about talking with the indigenous people.

[00:25:22]One of the delicacies is the wild animals, the fruit beds. So, how can we uh start the process of discussing with them how to handle these things? How to handle the animals and the beds and everything is very crucial. Back to you Amna. Okay.

[00:25:40]>> Uh thank you. Thank you very much RD. Uh Katherine, could I please ask you to repeat your question on finances? It it was regarding finances. Uh how much money is still needed uh to help uh fight uh this outbreak? Thank you.

[00:25:56]>> Thank you. Thank you. We will go to Dr. Chu uh to uh help us out. Please Dr. Chua.

[00:26:04]>> Thank you very much. Very important question. Firstly, just to say that at the start of the outbreak, uh we immediately the director general released $3.9 million US from our contingency fund for emergencies. This is a very important fund that enables us start any response.

[00:26:22]So that's what we've used to start the response uh to the outbreak. Uh currently we estimate our costs, our needs uh for the initial three months of the outbreak to be $115 million.

[00:26:36]That will be part of a strategic preparedness and response plan that is being launched on Friday done together with our partners in Africa CDC uh the two uh the Democratic Republic of Congo and uh Uganda and all the other partners that are part of that response. So this is uh what needs but it's part of a much bigger requirement for the total response of what needs of that 115. We are only 35% funded at the moment uh for this initial period and considering the scale of the outbreak um we estimate we'll need a lot more for the duration of the response. However um we are doing the very best we have with we can with what we have. We've mobilized fully to the field supporting the government and working with many other partners. What we bring to the table is not necessarily primary financial. The the money is important to enable the response. But there's a very strong response happening in in the DRC in Buna where I am at the moment. partners are working ahead of the resources and uh really anticipating that as usual the world will come together not as an act of charity but an as an act of solidarity uh to support the ongoing response in Buna and uh the rest of the DRC. Back to you.

[00:28:02]>> Thank you very much uh Dr. Chua. We will turn now to the reporters online and we have got a question from uh Nigeria Health Watch. Uh please unmute yourself, introduce yourself and ask the question.

[00:28:21]>> Thank you Amma. Good um good good day everyone wherever your report you are.

[00:28:27]Um my question this is Acha from Nigeria Health Watch. Um we would really like to know what WH's advice is to countries within the region especially as WH has placed countries in high risk and also what WHO is doing differently now to build trust in uh communities in DRC given that this is not the first Ebola outbreak. Thank you.

[00:28:51]>> Thank you very much. Uh uh we will go to Dr. Abdi with this question. Dr. Abdi.

[00:29:01]Thanks. Thanks so much. Our regional office under the leadership of our regional director Dr. has been working with all the member state in the in the region. When we talk about the region high maybe it's there in the detail of this outbreak. We mean the neighboring countries that's South Sudan and Uganda and we have 10 other countries that needs to be ready. What we're doing right now is bringing the government leadership. Uh Dr. Janabi had a meeting with all the head of state ministers in ensuring the risk we are in a live in an interconnected continent together with the leadership of Africa CDC we go with one plan in support of the member state. So I think what's really critically different in this response is starting with the community because we know very well is the community ownership and the leadership but going all the way to the head of state and the ministries of health. So it's one plan for Africa led by the Africans in solving the African problem together with the global solidarity. So our recommendation for the other countries is to get ready. uh Ebola is not the only problem in all these countries viral hemorrhagic where there's a loss of fever in Nigeria or the previous outbreak. So is the emergency preparedness and readiness as an element of the IHR amendment. So all the countries have to go through the IHR core capacity to be ready for this outbreak but also for the subsequent outbreaks. So I just would like to give to Dr. Janabi if you would like to add additional points from Africa point of view.

[00:30:46]Yeah, thank thank you very much Abdi.

[00:30:48]You said it correctly. I have met all the minister. I've spoken and met physically with the minister from uh DRC DRC and the minister of communication also is involved while I was in it. I'm on the telephone with principal secretary of Uganda. As you know Uganda the minister has not been shown yet.

[00:31:12]I've been online with the minister of Sudan and tomorrow at 11:00 we are having a joint meeting which I'm going to to to be to to chair it with all the three with all the four ministers two from BRC the Dr. Diana from Uganda and the minister from uh South Sudan because the message is very clear to neighboring countries must remain vigilant.

[00:31:40]Strengthen the border health surveillance. Share information very quickly. Keep borders open for essential supplies. Deploy our regional emergency teams and engage communities and faith leaders to build the trust and secure humanitarian trustes where necessary where conflict exist. I I believe we we always I've always talked with them. So, reality and cooperation is the backbone of this outbreak control. So, we continue to engage with them uh in all means which we can. Thank you. Back to you Amna.

[00:32:16]>> Uh thank you Dr. Janabi. Uh Dr. Bellis, anything you wanted to add on this one?

[00:32:24]>> Oh, thank you so much. Maybe I can add that in the point of view of the countries that are at high risk. So we already take a specific actions. One of them is the evaluation of all their capacity in order to respond or to detect to one case of hemoragic fever namely Ebola. So we already have a dashboard of their capacity that we can share that everyone will see which country has its capacity. So far we already also deploy three staff in South Sudan that will be there to support their contingency plan. All the high-risk countries has already reviewed their contingency plan and budgeted that contingency plan. Three staff have been deployed in South Sudan and some of the countries has received a small funding in order to start with the simulation exercise and also to review their capacity for clinical care. Some countries have identified places where they will put a patient if this become positive for Ebola and each country also will receive 500 PPE that will be prepositioned in all of those countries.

[00:33:35]So far we have 10 higharan countries but however how we are responding to a fake all the countries also are part of a preparedness plan in the Africa region offer.

[00:33:49]Thank you very much Dr. Belliser. Uh Dr. Zakaria, you had something.

[00:33:55]>> Thank you. Um perhaps just on the second question as well on what is it that we are uh doing to make sure that we have the trust of people. I think it's very important here to fully recognize as well that there's a lot of suffering happening in the three provinces of DRC.

[00:34:11]There's also equally a lot of suffering in South Sudan. Uh and Uganda host a lot of refugee populations as well. uh and so it is critical that health service provision is maintained and that is an integral part of our strategic plan to comprehensively respond to the current Ebola outbreak. Um we have over 50 health cluster partners mostly uh congalles organizations uh operating and delivering services in close to 500 health facilities across North Ku, South Ku and Italy. And it is critical that we provide all the means that they need to be protected to continue service delivery and also then to contribute to the response of uh the ongoing BVD outbreak. Health has actually been instrumental in securing access to conflict affected areas in North Ku and South Ku since last year. And so we want to also capitalize on that established relationship with health authorities in all locations to make sure that the BBD response can be um as effective as as possible uh reach all the populations in need while also then safeguarding access to health care and protection for the entire population who needs it badly.

[00:35:27]Thank you.

[00:35:29]>> Thank you. Thank you, Dr. Zakaria. Uh the next question will go to uh stat Helen Bransville. Uh Helen, over to you, please.

[00:35:42]>> I thank you very much for doing this and thank you Emma for taking my question. I actually would like to squeeze in two if I could. The first for the DG. Um Dr. Tedros, do you have thoughts about the US plan to establish a quarantine and early treatment center in Kenya rather than uh allow Americans who may have had exposure to Ebola in the outbreak zone to return to the United States? And the second question would be for Dr. Mory.

[00:36:12]Could you tell us a little bit please about the status of um trials for the uh antivirals and other uh medical count not nonvaccine medical countermeasures.

[00:36:24]Thank you.

[00:36:27]>> Thank you Helen.

[00:36:33]>> Thank you. Thank you Helen.

[00:36:35]We're working u with the US. We collaborate at all levels, expert level and high level. We share information and um uh they're also investing, they're supporting financially and I know they will uh increase their their support. Uh there is strong commitment at all levels and I'm really glad to see that. So for the response I think that's the most uh important part uh with the rest of what they're doing uh I think based on their risk assessment uh they have you know uh the the they can do whatever they think is is right for them.

[00:37:26]uh but I really appreciate actually the strong commitment and support I see in responding to uh this Ebola outbreak and we're I'm in touch including my level by the way.

[00:37:40]Thank you.

[00:37:42]>> Thank you DG uh Dr. Vasi for the question on the status of clinical trials please.

[00:37:51]>> Yes, thank you for the question Helen.

[00:37:53]So I think that this is good news in a much better than we've been outbreaks. Um and this is really the work the preparedness work over the last several years that is bearing fruit. So is in advanc stages of preparation now integrated into the scaling up of the case management um the partner the patient referral pathways um so it's really central that that trial is is integrated into the broader treatment work um but we understand that the protocol has been approved by authorities in in DRC and is going through that process in Uganda um the Two agents there are MBP134 promising pan uh Ebola monoconal antibbody and rem desave um which in the trial there are multiple arms including a combination of those two. So that is most advanced um because that protocol was written before this outbreak and we were able as a preparedness protocol. So the fact that we have these preparedness protocols approved before outbreaks is a development. Secondly, when we uh consider prevention of cases, we're certainly not waiting for the vaccines in that we have another new development for uh an Ebola outbreak and that is a oral antiviral. So, Obel dese had this before in any previous outbreaks viruses. You have an oral option for research. Here I would like to point out the really close coordination between leadership from the the national authorities in in DLC in Uganda, Africa CDC and ANRS which is the lead phirrus cork that we have collaborative open research consortium the R&D blueprint uh works with to collaborate with scient all of these partners are coming together to uh write the protocol for a clinical trial looking at opal dese as a postexposure prophylaxis and again here uh very close coordination with um those working in the field for contact tracing will be very important I think there is a possibility looking at this in a positive contact trac we will be able to offer potentially beneficial uh option to the contact list uh in this clinical trial and protocol and advanced development it will still be uh at least two to three weeks before we can start that protocol.

[00:40:36]Thank you. I'll stop there.

[00:40:39]>> Thank you, Dr. Vasi. Um the next question will go to Alis Park from Time magazine. Uh kind ask from uh our reporters. Please uh keep your questions to one only in the interest of time because we still have a couple of your colleagues waiting to ask their questions. Um Alice, the floor is yours.

[00:41:03]Thank you. This is actually a followup to to the previous questions about uh the state of trials. Um Dr. Tedris, I wonder if you can address to what extent uh there has been preparations since the previous Ebola outbreak in establishing R&D and having those protocols that Dr. Vasi just mentioned in place. Um, and is is would this outbreak be the first time that we have something like that in place because of preparations before?

[00:41:36]And how much has that R&D and investment in in that pre-work um been impacted by recent uh cuts in in your funding?

[00:41:49]>> Thank you. Thank you, Alice. We will go to Dr. Vasi again. Dr. Vasi.

[00:42:04]We don't have the connection.

[00:42:06]>> Thank you.

[00:42:06]>> Oh yes, please go ahead.

[00:42:09]>> I think this is an area that sorry comes and goes here. Um I was saying that I wouldn't the first time but it is continuing to improve the preparedness work. So in a previous outbreak in in Uganda again there there was a very rapid initiation because of this preparedness work but what we are looking to do with the corks is systematically >> uh Dr. I uh we we can't hear you very well. Uh Alice, can you please send a question to uh mediawin?

[00:42:59]>> Uh Dr. Vasi, I'm sorry your sound your sound is a bit choppy.

[00:43:04]So we can't get everything you are getting. We asking Alice to contact us via email and we will forward that email to you for the responses. Um, the next question uh goes to uh Ashley uh from Bloomberg Ashley do I please unmute yourself and ask your question.

[00:43:35]Okay, some problems. Uh there uh the next one is uh Jen Rigby from Reuters.

[00:43:46]Hello, thank you for taking my question.

[00:43:48]Um, I just wanted to ask very quickly, has is the WHO putting out situation reports? A couple of people have asked us about them and we would also be interested to see them if they are. And then very quickly, um, about when the outbreak began, people have been saying to us on the ground that it's being discussed that it started in January or February. And I just wondered if you could comment on those dates, please.

[00:44:07]Thanks.

[00:44:10]Uh yes, thank you. Thank you, Jen. Uh we will go to Dr. Abdi uh to start us off.

[00:44:17]Uh Dr. Muhammad, >> thanks. As I mentioned earlier, this is an ongoing investigation. The team are in the field trying to tell the story what happened when the death started.

[00:44:31]Initially we're aware about April but as any other outbreak it will take us time to go all the data and once we have full picture we are hearing from community we are sitting down with them so the anecdotal report of uh the team there is very important so listening to the community when did it start how did it present all that work is going on and once it's finalized uh through the INSP we will share that but right now they all dates around I will request for has to wait for the full report on on that.

[00:45:04]It will take time. Uh so what we've been saying is this outbreak started earlier.

[00:45:10]How earlier? Time will tell. But weeks, months, but uh what we received from there was the initial and maybe we will see it in our disease outbreak news is that case that was confirmed but before then the investigation is going on as it's been finalized.

[00:45:29]>> Thank you Dr. from Mahmud. Um, >> so uh I think I want to um of course I agree with Abdi. Um there are many uh what do you call it scenarios um of course could be January, could be February, March or April. I think proper investigation is needed. Uh and we're we're we're doing that.

[00:45:59]uh but I think the focus now should be on the response. It's it's very important that we focus on the response because as we say the virus is there are things I observed in the field