This archive report was first published on 8 December 2019.
December 8, 2019
Rwanda's health minister, Diane Gashumba, announced that the country has started using a new vaccine developed by Johnson & Johnson to protect its residents from the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
The vaccine, Ad26-ZEBOV-GP, is an experimental drug that was first used in mid-November in Goma, DR Congo, on the other side of the border.
So far, there have been no confirmed cases of Ebola in Rwanda, but the country has taken precautions to prevent the spread of the virus.
The epicentre of the outbreak in DR Congo, which has killed over 2,200 people since August 2018, is located 350 kilometres north of Goma, in the Beni-Butembo region.
More than 250,000 people in DR Congo have already been vaccinated using another product, rVSV-ZEBOV, made by Merck Shape and Dohme.
People working in the health sector, at border crossings, police officers, and business executives who frequently travel between the two countries are being given priority in the vaccination campaign.
However, all residents in the border districts can ask to be vaccinated if they wish.
"We lived in a life of worry because of what was going on in DR Congo," said Joel Ntwari Murihe, one of the first Rwandans to be vaccinated.
"It caused a lot of border disruptions as we were restricted to buying or selling with DR Congo residents who live in Goma," he added.
"The vaccine is an assurance to the safety for our lives and our children's lives," Murihe said.
