WHO appeals for US $2.9 million against yellow fever

The World Health Organization (WHO) said on Wednesday that it was launching an urgent appeal for US $2.9 million to fight “a potentially disastrous outbreak of yellow fever in Abidjan”, Côte d’Ivoire. The money is to be used for an immunisation campaign that requires some three million doses of vaccine. WHO said it was preparing to deliver vaccines from an international stockpile to Abidjan “as soon as possible”. It said rapid action was essential to buy vaccine stocks and deliver them quickly to Cote d’Ivoire “to prevent this worrying outbreak from becoming a humanitarian disaster”. There have been 20 suspected cases of yellow fever in Abidjan - including four deaths - and six have been confirmed. Suspected cases have also been reported elsewhere in the country, according to WHO, which said “indications are that the real situation could be considerably more serious than the number of cases officially suggests”. Yellow Fever, a mosquito-borne disease, can spread extremely rapidly in densely populated urban areas, causing thousands of deaths. Symptoms begin to appear after an incubation period of three to seven days. WHO said that following confirmation of the first cases in Abidjan, the Ivorian government had appealed to it for help in mobilising international funds to provide financial and technical aid. A WHO rapid assessment team is in Abidjan, working with the Ministry of Public Health to formulate a response to the outbreak.