The World Health Organization(WHO) is warning against any travel and trade restrictions with Rwanda in the context of the ongoing Marburg virus disease(MVD) outbreak.
The MVD was confirmed two weeks ago in Rwanda, and has so far claimed lives of fourteen people, but another sixteen has recovered while thirty one(31) others are in isolation and under treatment as of October 11.
However, basing on its International Health Regulations (IHR) (2005), the WHO finds that these restrictions against Rwanda, are unfair.
The IHR are an instrument of international law that is legally-binding on 196 countries, including the 194 WHO Member States.
The regulations create rights and obligations for countries, including the requirement to report public health events. The Regulations also outline the criteria to determine whether or not a particular event constitutes a “public health emergency of international concern”.
In this context, WHO writes: “At this time travel and trade restrictions are ineffective and unnecessary for the control of the ongoing outbreak of Marburg virus disease (MVD) in Rwanda and are potentially harmful to the affected societies and economies.”
This warning continues with WHO also sharing a concern that in future, this could hinder countries from giving accurate information about outbreak conditions.
“Travel and trade restrictions may act as a disincentive for the rapid sharing of public health data and information with and among-st the global health community, which is critical for informed outbreak response,” parts of the WHO warning reads.
WHO reminds that since the MVD outbreak on September 7, Rwanda confirmed gave the situation of the virus, and then put in place effective responses to contain the spread, and with all the measures in place, WHO can write: “There is currently no evidence of community transmission.”
After risk assessment, and with an informed perspective, WHO advises those countries imposing restrictions to refrain from implementing any travel and trade restrictions with Rwanda.
It also calls on countries to act in line with the requirements of the International Health Regulations (IHR) (2005) and in the spirit of global solidarity and collaboration.
Efforts should come in form of supporting Rwanda’s response, from early detection to reporting, and contact tracing; case management; infection prevention and control among others.
Instead of preventing people from travelling to and from Rwanda, WHO rather recommends countries to provide up-to-date advice to travelers.
This warning against travel and trade restriction against Rwanda, is not the first of its kind.
In the just concluded Biashara Afrika, a summit which took place in Kigali to continue the conversation of how African countries should trade with each other, Director-General of Africa Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), Dr Jean Kaseya shared his concern against restrictions on Rwanda.
In his opening remarks, he said that he had intended to join everyone to celebrate the signing of the AfCFTA, which he said, “was conceived as a strategic moment to rethink the future of Africa, and the way to unlock intra-Africa trade.”
But he had decided to put aside his prepared speech, he said, “to address a major issue, the link between trade and health.” The decision was prompted by the level 3 travel notice, that the United Status of America (USA), issued for anyone considering travel to Rwanda, which, for the last two weeks or so, has been battling the first ever, Marburg outbreak. A level 3 travel notice advises against all but non essential travel.
This, noted Dr Kaseya, was inappropriate. “I challenged them. I told them yesterday, that this decision is unfair. It is unacceptable, especially for a country that is doing more than all of us are doing, including the US. Let me reassure you, that this decision is not evidence based…because what I have seen in Rwanda, since I landed, even before I landed, I am just impressed. There is nothing more that could be done, that Rwanda is not doing.”
