Africa CDC Investigates Unknown Disease Outbreak in Burundi

The Africa CDC is currently investigating an unknown disease outbreak in Burundi, as announced by Dr. Tolbert Nyenswah, the Director of Pandemic Prevention and Preparedness at the Africa CDC, during a weekly high-level press briefing on Thursday.

A multidisciplinary team, including surveillance experts, laboratory scientists, and public health specialists, has been deployed to remote mountainous areas of Burundi to assess the situation and determine the cause of the outbreak. Preliminary laboratory tests have ruled out major viral hemorrhagic fever (VHF), and confirmatory tests conducted at national and regional reference laboratories have returned negative results.

The investigation is ongoing, with additional tests being carried out across the Africa CDC's network of reference laboratories to ensure comprehensive analysis and avoid missing any emerging uncommon pathogens. Dr.

Nyenswah emphasized the importance of cross-border collaboration and the need to strengthen primary healthcare systems across the continent, particularly in hard-to-reach areas.