Washington (AFP)

The World Bank on Wednesday announced aid of "up to $ 300 million" as part of the global fight against the Ebola epidemic in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

"Together, we must take urgent measures to end the deadly Ebola epidemic that is destroying lives and livelihoods in the Democratic Republic of the Congo," said Kristalina Georgieva, Executive Director of the World Bank, quoted in the press release.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has elevated the current epidemic to a "public health emergency of international concern".

"We urgently need more support and resources from the international community to prevent this crisis from worsening inside the country and spreading across borders," Georgieva said. .

According to the latest bulletin released Monday by the country's authorities, "the cumulative number of cases is 2,592, of which 2,498 are confirmed and 94 are probable.In total, there were 1,743 deaths (1,649 confirmed and 94 probable) and 729 people cured", since August 2018.

Congolese Health Minister Dr. Oly Ilunga resigned Monday, dismissing President Felix Tshisekedi's decision to take control of the Ebola response.

The $ 300 million in World Bank funding announced Wednesday is in addition to the $ 100 million already provided by the institution through its Pandemic Emergency Assistance Facility.

The new funding "shows that we are really concerned about the need to intensify the response because the pandemic shows no signs of weakening at this stage," Annette Dixon, vice president of the World Bank, told AFP. health programs.

"While the country has proven itself by quickly ending previous Ebola pandemics, the current epidemic is concentrated in an extremely poor region of the country that faces many other challenges, including lack of security," she said. she added.

Dixon also urged recognition that "these communities need support before and after Ebola", especially as they face epidemics of cholera, measles and malaria.

The "Ebola virus disease" (formerly known as "Ebola haemorrhagic fever") takes its name from the Ebola River, located in the north of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC, Zaire era) where the virus was spotted for the first time in 1976.

The current epidemic in the DRC, which has been going on since August 2018, is the worst in the history of the disease since the one that hit West Africa between late 2013 and 2016.

During an outbreak, Ebola is transmitted between humans through direct contact. A healthy person is contaminated by the "bodily fluids" of a sick person: blood, vomit, feces ...

Unlike the flu, this virus can not be transmitted by air. Ebola is less infectious than many other viral diseases.

But this virus is formidable because of its very high "fatality rate": it kills on average about half of the people it reaches, according to WHO.

© 2019 AFP