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

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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/

 

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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/sc...st-results/3073694-5290708-l977wfz/index.html

 

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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

 

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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

 

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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