Uganda, WHO provides access to SVD candidate vaccine

The World Health Organization (WHO) and its partners provided emergency support to the Government of Uganda in response to an outbreak of Sudan virus disease (SVD), a member of the Ebola family. This support included facilitating access to candidate vaccines and treatments. The first delivery of 2,160 vaccine doses and treatment candidates was fast-tracked to Kampala, Uganda, as part of outbreak preparedness activities. The WHO has allocated US$1 million from its Emergency Response Fund to accelerate efforts to control the outbreak. The monoclonal antibody and antiviral are undergoing clinical trials to assess their efficacy and safety. The vaccine and treatment candidates are being made available through clinical trial protocols that are being conducted as part of a global collaborative effort coordinated by the WHO. This effort includes entities such as the Ugandan Ministry of Health, developers, academic institutions, regulatory authorities, and Ugandan industry experts and researchers. The trial aims to evaluate a vaccine candidate with the potential to end the current outbreak and protect vulnerable populations in the future. As of 30 January, there was one confirmed case and 45 contacts being followed up. Uganda has experienced five previous outbreaks of SVD, the last of which was declared in September 2022 and ended in January 2023 with 164 cases and 77 deaths.