Luanda, 12 August 2016 – Angola is beginning a new phase in its response to the yellow fever outbreak with the launch of a pre-emptive mass vaccination campaign scheduled to start on the 15th of August and targeting 3 million people in 12 provinces and 22 districts. This phase will focus on vaccinating bordering areas with the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Namibia as well as some high-risk districts with confirmed or probable virus transmission.

Mass vaccination is the key focus of the response strategy to control the yellow fever outbreak and prevent international spread. As of today, Angola has vaccinated 13 million people, representing 52% of its population against yellow fever, covering 51 municipalities of 11 provinces.

Commendable progress has been made in tackling this outbreak. However, the next rainy season expected for September usually leads to an increase in the number of mosquitoes that could result in new cases. The government of Angola with the support from WHO and other response partners are strengthening epidemiological surveillance, timely laboratory testing, eradication of mosquito breeding sites and social mobilization as the main pillars of the national response.

As of 4th of August 2016, Angola has reported a total of 3867 suspected cases of which 879 were laboratory confirmed. There have been 369 deaths reported among all the suspect cases, of which 119 were among the confirmed cases.

The number of cases reached its peak in late February/early March and since then it has been consistently declining. No laboratory confirmed case of yellow fever has been reported in Angola since June 23.

Since the start of the outbreak in December 2015, WHO has deployed over 100 experts in epidemiology, disease surveillance, vaccination, vector control, diagnosis, clinical care, social mobilization and risk communications to support the governments in Angola within the framework of their national yellow fever epidemic response.

An Incident Management System has been put in place by WHO in Angola to support the Ministry of Health in the yellow fever response. It has bring together partners including China CDC, US CDC, UNICEF, UNDP, OCHA, MSF, the Institute Pasteur, OCHA, the National Red Cross and other national and international NGOs.

To date, Angola has received 18 million doses of vaccines from the yellow fever vaccine stockpile that is managed by the International Coordinating Group on Vaccine Provision for Yellow Fever Control (YF-ICG). Created in 2001, the YF ICG consists of representatives from WHO, the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), Médecins sans Frontières (MSF) and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC). WHO/Headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, serves as its Secretariat. The role of the YF ICG stockpile is to ensure a prompt availability of yellow fever vaccines in case of epidemics and its most rational use.

«The WHO office in Angola along with the partners involved in the response have been providing technical and logistical support to the ministry of health to ensure that the vaccines are used effectively and efficiently, that the districts are prepared and have the required means for the vaccination of all target population and that the number of vaccinated population and the stock of vaccines are accounted in a proper manner» said Dr. Hernando Agudelo, the Country Representative of the World Health Organization in Angola.

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For media enquiries, please contact:

Mr José Caetano, Information Officer, WHO Angola; +244 926546698; Email:  soarescaetanoj [at] who.int (soarescaetanoj[at]who[dot]int)

Mr Collins Boakye-Agyemang, Regional Communications Advisor, WHO AFRO, Mobile: +242 06520 6565, Email:  boakyeagyemangc [at] who.int (boakyeagyemangc[at]who[dot]int)