ADDIS ABABA, Dec. 12 (Xinhua) -- The death toll from the ongoing Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has climbed to 2,209, the African Union (AU) disclosed on Thursday.
According to the 55-member pan African bloc's latest periodic report on the status Ebola virus, a total of 2,209 deaths were reported due to the ongoing Ebola outbreak in DRC as of Dec. 8, registering additional 59 new human causalities from the 2,150 deaths that were reported as of October 13.
The AU, which provides support to continental and international efforts against the epidemic through its specialized agency -- Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), also indicated that a total of 3,327 Ebola cases were reported as of Dec. 8.
The AU also said that some 1,087 people have recovered from the deadly disease as of the stated period, in which the overall Ebola fatality ratio has remained at 67 percent.
Last week, the AU Commission had hosted a resource mobilization event -- dubbed "Africa against Ebola Private Sector and Partner Forum" -- to solicit resources from AU member states and other partners to support efforts to end the Ebola virus disease (EVD) in DRC and contain it from spreading.
During the solidarity event, more than 55 million U.S. dollars have been pledged along with other in-kind supports and assistance to Africa's fight against Ebola.
The current Ebola outbreak in the DRC was declared on Aug. 1 last year, the outbreak was eventually declared as a public health emergency of international concern by the World Health Organization in August this year.
The Africa CDC, in its latest periodic report issued on late Friday on the status of the Ebola virus outbreak in DRC, also said that Regional Collaborating Centers have continued to support preparedness in AU member states, mainly through sharing information and preparedness plans during over the past weeks.
Africa CDC volunteers and experts have also during the past week supported through the tracing of 831 contacts and investigation of 1,678 alerts, including active case-finding for 353 suspected cases, it was noted.
