Prof. Oyewale Tomori, chairman of the WHO Emergency committee and a professor of virology at Nigeria's Redeemer's University, "although the yellow fever situation is improving, the event continues to be serious and requires sustained, controlled measures."
The hemorrhagic disease caused by infected mosquitoes recorded more or less 6,000 incidents and a thousand laboratory-confirmed cases.
In December, the first reported occurrences happened in Angola's capital city of Luanda, considered as the outbreak's epicenter.
Congo soon followed in April where cases were noted in eight of its 26 provinces.
Symptoms include fever, headache, jaundice, muscle pain, nausea, vomiting and fatigue. Nearly half of those who develop severe manifestations die within 10 days. More than 400 people have died since the epidemic started in December.
As of May 2016, Angola recorded 2,267 suspected incidents with 293 deaths.
But Dr. Peter Salama, executive director of the WHO Health Emergency Program, allayed fear of further proliferation. The last reported cases in the two affected nations happened in June and July.
The virus has spread to other regions via travelers, posing threat to people who are not vaccinated against the disease. The health group also remains concerned that incidents in Kenya and China pose a serious public threat that warrants an intensified national action and enhanced international support.
According to the WHO, the epidemics in Africa are largely located in prominent cities. Visiting tourists gain access to these risk and it is probable that infected persons will bring the disease to other regions.
The organization has urged countries to enforce vaccine requirements for travelers going in and out of Angola and Congo. The vaccine costs about one dollar a dose. One shot usually offers lifetime protection against the infection.
