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European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations
  • News article
  • 29 October 2024
  • Directorate-General for European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (ECHO)
  • 1 min read

Rwanda: The EU steps up humanitarian funding in response to Marburg disease outbreak

Cooling container with several vaccines in it. A hand reaches into it to take one out.
© WHO, 2022

The EU announced today new funding of €850,000 for Rwanda, to help the country address the ongoing Marburg disease outbreak declared in September 2024. The outbreak, the first ever declared in the country, is affecting mainly the capital Kigali and had resulted by 25 October 2024 in 64 confirmed cases and 15 deaths. An estimate 1.75 million people are potentially at risk.

The additional funding will support our partners, WHO and ALIMA, address immediate and critical needs related to coordination, surveillance, advanced case management, training of healthcare workers and provision of supplies. The project is expected to run for 6 months.

Background

In 2024, the EU allocated €6 million in humanitarian aid for the Burundi refugee response and €4.75 million for regional disaster preparedness interventions, which includes the funding of humanitarian projects in Rwanda.