Health

A new 15-minute test for Ebola is currently being trialled in Guinea, the epicentre of the deadly outbreak that has killed thousands in recent weeks. If successful, researchers believe the breakthrough – which is six times faster than tests used at present – could help medical staff identify and isolate Ebola patients, allowing them to receive treatment sooner. "It not only gives patients a better chance of survival, but it prevents transmission of the virus to other people," said Wellcome Trust, which is funding development and trials of the test, spokesperson Val Snewin. The test, which uses a “mobile suitcase laboratory” – roughly the size of a laptop with a solar panel, a power pack and results radar, will be tested in Guinea’s capital Conkary.

Its design means that it can be easily transported to remote areas affected by Ebola, where health workers and aid organisations have warned there is little information and even less healthcare. The test uses reagent substances which detect the genetic material of the virus, but crucially are available as dried pellets that do not need cold storage. The initiative is one of six funded by the Wellcome Trust and the Department for International Relations (DFID) in a £6.5 million Research for Health in Humanitarian Crises programme.

The latest estimates from the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention indicate that 5,674 people have died after contracting Ebola, with an estimated 15,000 cases in total. Of these figures, 1,260 of the dead were from Guinea. The country’s healthcare has struggled to cope under the outbreak, with only 160 designated Ebola beds in two Ebola Treatment Centres, according to International SOS. The news comes amid French President Francois Holland’s visit to the country. He was warmly greeted by crowds and Guinean President Alpha Conde, who declared if Mr Hollande could visit the country, then anybody could.

Report from Reuters

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Ngwa Bertrand

29.Nov.2014

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Vytenis Andriukaitis, the European Commissioner for Health and Food Safety, and Christos Stylianides, the European Commissioner for Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Management, have already reached out to over 14 ministers, urging them to send more medical staff to Ebola-hit countries. European officials have asked national authorities for both medical staff and volunteers operating through charities for more help in fighting Ebola. In August, medical charity group, Doctors Without Borders, warned that the Ebola outbreak is moving faster than aid organizations can handle.

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Ngwa Bertrand

27.Nov.2014

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Ngwa Bertrand

27.Nov.2014

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When citizens of Ebola-hit West African countries land in the Chinese city of Guangzhou, they are asked to alight the airplane before other passengers, submit themselves to a health check, and report their health status twice daily for the next 21 days, and they are restricted to staying in just one hotel, Voice of America reports.

So far, 90 people from Sierra Leone, Guinea, Liberia, and the Democratic Republic of Congo have had to check in at the Hotel Canton, a state-owned establishment in which a full five floors have been cleared for foreigners, doctors, and security officers perceived to be at risk of Ebola. Their stay is free of charge and guests are able to travel around the city as they please, but they must carry a GPS-enabled mobile phone at all times.

For most of the world outside West Africa, nervousness about Ebola has receded, and large-scale measures to protect public health are generally met with skepticism. Still, in Guangzhou, which lies just 25 km (15 miles) from the global epicenter of the 2002 SARS outbreak that killed more than 8,000 people, it’s perhaps understandable that local officials are cautious.

But the concern of Guangzhou bureaucrats may have more to do with the racial makeup of the part of town referred to by some as “Little Africa,” or “Chocolate City”—a 10-square-kilometer (4-square-mile) district that is home to an estimated 16,000 Africans, by some estimates the largest African population in Asia.

A high population of Africans is of course no reason to start worrying about an Ebola outbreak, but for a country as unfamiliar with immigrants as China (it gives out just 248 green cards per year, compared with 50,000 issued by the US green card lottery alone), and with its history of holding other foreigners at bay, the measures are unfortunately not surprising.

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Ngwa Bertrand

26.Nov.2014

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In 2013, in Central and West Africa, the Swiss agro-foods company, Nestlé, lowered salt content in all its food products by 2.69% relative to 2012. Some of these products, particularly Maggi bouillon cubes, were also enriched with iron. Nestlé’s Cameroonian subsidiary made this announcement on November 14, 2014 during the celebration of World Diabetes Day.

According to the company, “last year, the company committed to reducing salt in all its brands to support the WHO’s goal of a maximum daily allowance of sodium of 5g by 2025”. In the spirit of this commitment, “Nestlé has already improved over 20 of its brands such as Maggi to reduce salt content in its food products to make them healthier for consumers.” By 2016, salt, sugar and saturated fat content will be reduced by 10%.

In Cameroon, the supply hub for the Central African region, the Swiss agro-foods company produces and sells mostly Maggi bouillon cubes, which represent 90% of the Bonabéri factory’s production. Maggi bouillon cubes officially generate 5 billion FCFA in sales across the six CEMAC countries.

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Ngwa Bertrand

25.Nov.2014

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Ngwa Bertrand

22.Nov.2014

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