Tanzania (ex Uganda): WHO alerted after several cases of undiagnosed hemorrhagic illness - gov denies Ebola

[sharon sanders]

Now WHO is bringing the controversy to twitter. I have never seen them do this before:

• World Health Organization (WHO)Verified account @WHO 2h2 hours ago More
  
  
  
  CHRONOLOGY On 9 Sept, WHO was made aware of unofficial reports regarding the death of a person with suspected #Ebola case in #DarEsSalaam, #Tanzania. WHO immediately sent a verification request to the Natl Intl Health Regulation Focal Point of Tanzania http://bit.ly/2m7XAUC
  
  
  
  
  
  
  WHO African Region
  
  3 replies47 retweets82 likes
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• World Health Organization (WHO)Verified account @WHO 23m23 minutes ago More
  
  
  
  On 12 September, WHO was informed by unofficial sources of a 27-year-old patient suspected of #Ebola admitted in a hospital of #DarEsSalaam, #Tanzania without further information regarding laboratory tests and results http://bit.ly/2m7XAUC
  
  
  
  
  
  
  WHO African Region and WHO Tanzania
  
  1 reply9 retweets12 likes
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• World Health Organization (WHO)Verified account @WHO 5m5 minutes ago More
  
  
  
  On 14 September, #Tanzania officially reported to WHO that no case of #Ebola was confirmed in the country. According to the information provided by the Ministry of Health in a press release, two suspected cases were identified and both tested negative at a national laboratory
  
  
  
  
  
  
  WHO African Region and WHO Tanzania
  
  

[Pathfinder]

Tanzania appeals for help to stop Ebola spread

SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 21 2019
...
Permanent Secretary of Health Zainabu Chaula has written to the World Health Organisation, the Deutsche Gesellschaft f?r Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), the UK Department for International Development (DfID) and the World Food Programme, requesting $9.5 million to support the country?s preparedness and operational readiness.

In the letter dated September 18 and seen by The EastAfrican, Tanzania says; ?It is our expectation that you will help us to accomplish these tasks at the shortest possible time frame.?

The government cites the free movement of people across the border to and from the country, ?making Tanzania at a very high risk, since the affected health zones in DRC are all located to eastern and southern areas near the long borders of western Tanzania that has over 300 unofficial border crossings.?
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https://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/scienceandhealth/Tanzania-appeals-for-help-to-stop-ebola-spread/3073694-5282204-v5vr4k/index.html

[Pathfinder]

Alarm over cases of disease with Ebola-like symptoms in Tanzania

Peter Beaumont
Mon 23 Sep 2019 08.10 EDTLast modified on Mon 23 Sep 2019 08.11 EDT
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?We don?t know what?s going on,? one international health official told the Guardian. ?We don?t know what this disease is. The symptoms in the sister of the initial patient are different to the symptoms we?ve seen in the Ebola outbreak in Congo, which could suggest it is a different strain, but we just don?t know and that is what is driving the concern.?
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https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2019/sep/23/alarm-over-cases-of-disease-with-ebola-like-symptoms-in-tanzania

[Pathfinder]

SEPTEMBER 24, 2019 / 5:25 AM / UPDATED AN HOUR AGO

Tanzania summons World Health Organization rep over Ebola complaint

Fumbuka Ng'wanakilala

DAR ES SALAAM (Reuters) -
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On Tuesday government spokesman Hassan Abbasi said on Twitter that WHO country representative Tigest Ketsela Mengestu was summoned by deputy foreign affairs minister Damas Ndumbaro, in the commercial capital Dar es Salaam.

“The representative insisted that the WHO has not declared that there is Ebola in Tanzania, nor does it have any evidence on that and pledged to cooperate with the government,” Abbasi said.

“During the talks, the WHO agreed to strictly follow guidelines outlined by the agency itself and ratified by the government if it wants to get any additional information from the Tanzanian government.”
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WHO spokeswoman Fadela Chaib told reporters in Geneva on Tuesday that the agency had not received any information after it had requested Tanzanian authorities to assess potential risks from the recent incidences.
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“What we need to do is to continue communicating with them and provide them with help and expertise. We cannot sanction a country. It is not our mandate,” Chaib said.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-h...-idUSKBN1W9165

[Pathfinder]

Translation Google

ChiefGovernment @TZMsemajiMkuu4h4 hours ago4 hours ago 4h4 hours ago



The government has called on a representative of the World Health Organization (WHO) in the country to find out the Agency's deepest propaganda. The representative has insisted that the WHO has not said nor has any evidence that TZ has Ebola and will cooperate with the Government.










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ChiefGovernment @TZMsemajiMkuu 4h4 hours ago



In addition, in the negotiations the WHO has come to the conclusion that if there is a need for further information from the Government of Tanzania the procedure must be outlined in the guidelines of the institution and which is approved by the Government to be fully followed.

[Pathfinder]

U.S. Embassy in Tanzania
Travel Advisory (September 27, 2019)



Home | News & Events | Travel Advisory (September 27, 2019)




Travel Advisory: Level 2 – Exercise increased caution due to health issues. On Sep. 10, The Centers for Disease Control and World Health Organization were made aware of a probable Ebola-related death in Dar es Salaam. The individual reportedly traveled to Songea, Njombe, and Mbeya while ill. Read more on Travel.State.Gov here.

https://tz.usembassy.gov/travel-advi...ember-27-2019/

[Pathfinder]

Tanzania fights Ebola case claims as WHO demands test results

SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 28 2019
By ROSE MIREMBE
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Speaking to The EastAfrican in an interview, Dr Chaula Zaina, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Health was last week still non-committal on declaring the specific illness that was tested in the index cases and which the government declared was not a case of Ebola.

?The tests were to find out whether the patients were infected by Ebola or not, and we confirmed them negative,? she said, declining to reveal the results of the specimen tested, adding, ?there is no need to reveal to the public another illness we found in the tests.?
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A fortnight ago, a medical doctor said to have travelled from DR Congo died at the Temeke Referral Hospital in Dar es Salaam and unconfirmed reports said the cause of death could be Ebola. A second patient also in Dar es Salaam was alleged to have died of Ebola.
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WHO recommends countries that have not had an Ebola outbreak to allow suspect samples be tested by a reference laboratory for the first 50 negative samples.
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It is curious that following the allegations of confirmed case of Ebola in the country, Tanzania sent a formal emergency appeal to various international donor agencies for $9.5 million financial support for the country?s preparedness and operational readiness against an Ebola threat.
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https://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/scienceandhealth/Tanzania-fights-ebola-case-claims-who-demands-test-results/3073694-5290708-l977wfz/index.html

[Pathfinder]

GOV.UK

Foreign travel advice

Tanzania

Summary
Still current at:2 October 2019 Updated:1 October 2019

Latest update:

Health section and Summary - updated information on the death of a person in Dar es Salaam in September 2019; it appears probable that this is an Ebola-related death
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https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/tanzania

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Health
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Visitors to the region should be aware that on 1 August 2018 an outbreak of Ebola was confirmed in eastern DRC in North Kivu Province, originating in B?ni territory. New cases continue to be reported across the affected areas. On 17 July 2019, the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared the outbreak in DRC to be a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC). On 11 June 2019 the Ugandan Ministry of Health confirmed an outbreak of Ebola in Kasese District in western Uganda. The latest updates can be found on the WHO website.

A person has died in Tanzania in September 2019. It appears probable that this is an Ebola-related death. The WHO continues to investigate and has issued a statement. The British High Commission in Dar es Salaam is in contact with Tanzanian authorities and international health organisations, and this travel advice will be updated as new information becomes available. You should keep up to date with developments on the National Travel Health Network and Centre and WHO websites.
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https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/tanzania/health

[Pathfinder]

Tanzanian health authorities insist no Ebola outbreak

Source: Xinhua| 2019-10-03 19:44:20|Editor: Shi Yinglun

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"There is no Ebola outbreak in Tanzania. The country is safe and people should not be scared with rumors being spread by social media and some international news outlets," the Minister for Health, Ummy Mwalimu, told a news conference in the commercial capital Dar es Salaam.

"There is no way you can hide the outbreak of epidemics like Ebola," said the minister, adding that samples of two suspected Ebola patients who died recently were tested and laboratory results showed negative.

She said the results of the laboratory tests of the two patients were sent to the World Health Organization (WHO).
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The official added that the ministry in collaboration with relevant international bodies was continuing to conduct simulation exercises in border regions of Kagera, Kigoma, Kilimanjaro, Arusha and Dar es Salam.
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http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2019-10/03/c_138446413.htm

[Pathfinder]

Tanzania: Magufuli Reveals Why He Fired an Official Over Zika Virus

5 OCTOBER 2019

The Citizen (Dar es Salaam)

Mbozi — President John Magufuli on Friday October 4 revealed that he fired his government executive (without mentioning the name) because of announcing that there were Tanzanians found to harbor Zika Virus, something, he said, would have scared away tourists and potential investors.

President Magufuli's revelation comes three years since he removed from office the then Director General of the National Institute for Medical Research (Nimr) Dr Mwele Malecela. She had made public research findings indicating that the Zika virus exists in Tanzania.

But while addressing a rally in Songwe Region on Friday October 4, the Head of State called on Tanzanians to exercise caution on what he termed as misleading reports on the outbreak of epidemics in the country. The president said the reports were meant to tarnish the image of Tanzania and scare away tourists and investors.
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His remarks came just a day after the Health Minister Ummy Mwalimu came out to try to contain information that had gone viral on international platforms indicating there are suspected cases of Ebola in Tanzania.
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She insisted that the reports on suspected Ebola cases were being widely circulated by the media to tarnish Tanzania's image. The Health Minister's stance is similar to the one shown by President Magufuli.
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https://allafrica.com/stories/201910060039.html