Photo: WHO AFRO
Following yesterday’s declaration of Ebola virus disease in the Democratic Republic of the Congo as a Public Health Emergency of International Concern, the World Health Organization (WHO) reaffirms that the overall risk of Ebola spreading to the WHO Western Pacific Region remains low.
While stressing that vigilance is important, the International Health Regulations Emergency Committee recommends:
- No country should close its borders or place any restrictions on travel and trade. Such measures are usually implemented out of fear and have no basis in science. They push the movement of people and goods to informal border crossings that are not monitored, thus increasing the chances of the spread of disease. Most critically, these restrictions can also compromise local economies and negatively affect response operations from a security and logistics perspective.
- National authorities should work with airlines and other transport and tourism industries to ensure that they do not exceed WHO’s advice on international traffic.
- The Committee does not consider entry screening at airports or other ports of entry outside the African Region to be necessary.
In addition, WHO encourages countries across the Western Pacific Region to continue to strengthen preparedness for health emergencies of all kinds by implementing the Asia Pacific Strategy for Emerging Diseases and Public Health Emergencies (APSED III).
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