THE East African Community (EAC) is activating its rapidly deployable expert (RDE) pool for the first time in response to the ongoing Mpox virus outbreak, billed as a significant regional health intervention.

Veronica Nduva, the EAC secretary general, and Marcus von Essen, head of the East Africa Division at the Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) ministry in Germany presided at the launch event here over the weekend, attended by representatives from the DRC, Burundi and an RDE pool expert.

DRC and Burundi have been heavily affected by the disease outbreak as during the past month DRC reported over 7,000 confirmed cases, with nearly 40 per cent affecting children aged under 15.

To support health efforts in the DRC and Burundi, the EAC Secretariat is dispatching skilled regional emergency experts in three deployments in partnership with the German epidemic preparedness team (SEEG) over the next six months, she stated. 

At the official launch of the EAC RDE Pool, led by the South Kivu health department, in the DRC, the EAC team requested SEEG support for the deployments, building on an initial SEEG mission in June 2024.

It focused on infection prevention and control (IPC) measures for Ebola and Mpox outbreaks, where the mission outlined critical gaps in IPC training and supplies in local healthcare facilities.

In upcoming deployments, experts will provide vital training on IPC practices, risk communication and laboratory diagnostics to improve local health workers' and communities’ responses to the Mpox outbreak, experts noted.

 A training-of-trainers model will be used to multiply the impact within local health systems, with the deployments addressing shortages in essential medical supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE), equipping healthcare providers and communities to better manage the outbreak, the pool expert noted.

The EAC region has long been challenged by infectious disease outbreaks, including Ebola, Marburg, Measles, Bird Flu, and COVID-19. To bolster preparedness and response, the EAC established the RDE Pool in 2019, as approved by the 18th EAC Sectoral Council of Ministers of Health (EAC/SC/Health/18/Decision 08). The RDE Pool enables a rapid, coordinated, and multidisciplinary response to health crises in line with the International Health Regulations (IHR).

The experience of the West Africa Ebola outbreak (2014-2015) highlighted the need for quick, coordinated cross-border responses. In June 2024, the EAC, alongside the partner states, centres for disease prevention (Africa CDC) and the World Health Organisation (WHO), conducted a tabletop simulation exercise (TTX) in Nairobi, to test the RDE Pool’s deployment mechanism. 

Supported by BMZ through GIZ and SEEG, the exercise developed a roadmap to integrate EAC efforts with Africa CDC’s umbrella initiative, advancing joint planning, deployment and capacity building for outbreak responses.

The current Mpox outbreak, originating in eastern DRC, has since spread to Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda, exacerbated by a Marburg virus outbreak in Rwanda. Shortages in PPE, IPC supplies and limited laboratory capacity underscore the urgency of deploying the RDE Pool to contain the outbreak.

The RDE Pool, now consisting of over 140 experts from the EAC partner states, is set for further expansion, marking a new era in EAC’s capacity for regional health emergency response. Through these deployments, the EAC strengthens collaboration with key partners to safeguard regional public health and support cross-border outbreak responses.

At a press conference, the EAC secretariat chieftain emphasized regional coordination in tackling infectious diseases. The EAC region, with its continuous movement of people and goods, is particularly vulnerable to disease spread, she said, stressing the need for a coordinated response to mitigate health, economic, and livelihood impacts of outbreaks like Mpox and Marburg.