Today, a new Unitaid investment package of up to US$3.4 million was announced to help countries prepare for rapid access to promising new diagnostics and therapeutics for the Bundibugyo Ebola virus should they prove safe and effective, while also supporting access to other critical health products needed for the ongoing response.
The investment comes as promising new diagnostics and therapeutics move through clinical evaluation following the Ebola Bundibugyo outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda. By preparing for access before these products become available, the package aims to help ensure they can reach affected communities without delay while strengthening readiness for future outbreaks.
Building on four existing grants and partnerships already operating in the region, the package enables activities to begin immediately rather than waiting for new delivery mechanisms to be established. It also has the flexibility to expand activities through further investments should complementary funding become available.
"When new tools become available, countries shouldn't have to wait months before they can use them," said Unitaid Executive Director Philippe Duneton." By building on partnerships and implementation platforms that are already in place, we can prepare for access now rather than waiting until after products are approved. That means countries will be better positioned to deploy promising diagnostics and medicines as quickly as possible if they prove effective."
The package builds on ongoing work with the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Clinton Health Access Initiative (CHAI), alongside complementary grants with PATH and The Aurum Institute that are being repurposed to support the Ebola Bundibugyo response.
The investments are designed to address some of the most urgent access barriers facing the response, in line with the WHO-Africa CDC Continental Preparedness and Response Plan and in partnership with the WHO Interim Medical Countermeasures Network (iMCM-net). They will support the validation of new diagnostic tools capable of detecting the Bundibugyo virus and other recurrent hemorrhagic fever viruses; strengthen market intelligence and forecasting for promising diagnostics and medicines for the treatment and prevention of Bundibugyo, while developing access roadmaps and accelerating planning to ensure these products can be introduced rapidly and equitably should they prove effective; and identify and support innovative technologies to improve patient care in the challenging conditions of the most affected areas, alongside community engagement to strengthen the wider response.
This outbreak has highlighted significant gaps in available medical countermeasures. There are currently no approved vaccines or therapeutics for the Bundibugyo virus, while existing diagnostic tools have been unable to reliably detect it, delaying case identification and response.
By accelerating access to innovations during the current outbreak while helping strengthen preparedness for future ones, the investments are expected to benefit both affected countries and neighboring high-risk countries.
Kyle Wilkinson
Communications officer
+41 79 445 17 45
[email protected]