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This week marks one year since the start of the 10th Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Following the declaration of a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) on 17 July, the World Health Organization (WHO) in collaboration with the government of the DRC, other United Nations (UN) agencies, partners and communities, is working on further scaling up response and preparedness measures.

The President of South Africa, Mr. Cyril M Ramaphosa, on Thursday 25 July 2019 launched the country’s ‘Presidential Health Compact’. The Compact lays down a five-year roadmap for health systems strengthening reforms under the ‘9 pillars’ towards accelerating Universal Health Coverage (UHC) in South Africa. It originated from months of extensive consultative deliberations between key stakeholders following the Presidential Health Summit in Oct 2018. The Stakeholders comprised government, health and allied health professionals, labour, business community, academics and researchers, statutory bodies, traditional health practitioners and public health entities. WHO provided essential technical advice and support in development of the Presidential Health Compact.

The World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Office for Africa and the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) urge countries in the region to show solidarity with the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), which is experiencing its worst Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) outbreak. The two organizations call on countries in the region to redouble efforts to end the outbreak and build stronger health systems.