Contingency Fund for Emergencies (CFE)

WHO releases US$ 2 million from CFE for new Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

4 August 2018 -- A new outbreak of Ebola in North Kivu province has prompted WHO to release $2 million from the CFE. The rapid release of flexible funding will support the Ministry of Public Health and partners to respond to the outbreak.

• Read the announcement on Twitter
• More information on the Ebola response
• More information on Democratic Republic of the Congo

Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo ends

24 July 2018 - Today marks the end of the ninth outbreak of Ebola in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). The World Health Organization (WHO) congratulates the country and all those involved in ending the outbreak, while urging them to extend this success to combatting other diseases in DRC.

The CFE played a critical role in helping to stop the outbreak.

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WHO strengthened the National Public Health Laboratory to safely manage infectious specimens in South Sudan

6 July 2018 - Funding from the CFE supported a six-day training of trainers for laboratory biosafety and Ebola virus disease preparedness in Juba. It was part of a $1.5 million CFE regional allocation to support preparedness in nine countries following the Ebola outbreak in DRC.

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Republic of Korea renews its contribution to the CFE

13 July 2018 – The Republic of Korea has renewed its commitment to the CFE with a $1 million contribution. The Government of the Republic of Korea recognizes that the CFE provides a compelling return on investment as compared to the estimated cost of allowing outbreaks and other health emergencies to escalate. The response to recent emergencies has demonstrated the CFE’s proof of concept: a small sum released within days, even hours, can pay life-saving dividends.

• Dr Peter Salama, Deputy Director-General, thanks the Republic of Korea on Twitter
  13 July 2018

Ebola Response Timeline: First 30 Days

June 2018 - A graphic showing how the Ebola response in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) evolved in the first thirty days. The release of $1 million from the CFE within four hours of the declaration of the outbreak on 8 May proved critical in kick-starting the response. Subsequent releases on 14 May ($1 million) and 23 May ($1 million) allowed for the scale up of the response during the most critical period.

• View the Ebola resonse timeline for the Democratic Republic of the Congo
  pdf, 1.16Mb

Australia announces contribution of 4 million Australian dollars for WHO’s Contingency Fund for Emergencies

Australia has announced a contribution of 4 million Australian dollars to WHO’s Contingency Fund for Emergencies (CFE) to enable WHO to quickly and effectively respond to outbreaks. The Fund has been critical in providing immediate support to the Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo in response to the Ebola outbreak in the country.

The CFE gives WHO the resources to respond immediately to disease outbreaks and humanitarian crises with health consequences. The ability to respond quickly – in as little as 24 hours - before other funding is mobilized can stop a health emergency from spiraling out of control, saving lives and resources.

• Watch the video

Getting medicine to flood victims in Somalia, no matter what

29 May 2018 – Recent flash and river flooding in Somalia has affected an estimated 772 000 people and displaced nearly 230 000 people from their homes. The World Health Organization in Somalia is responding to the health needs of the most vulnerable, including by airlifting emergency medical supplies to different parts of the country. The CFE has provided US$489 500 for the response.

• Read the full story from the Regional Office website