The European Commission announced on Monday that 5 million euros will be allocated from the EU coffers to pay for clinical trials of vaccines and treatments against the SUDV strain of Ebola, against which there are currently no drugs to immunize or treat the affected population.
The contribution comes from the EU’s Health Emergency Response and Preparedness (HERA) funds and will finance the ongoing work of the World Health Organization with the Government of Uganda, a country where the situation is «very worrying» because of the «deadly» outbreak that is occurring, Health Commissioner Stella Kyriakides said in a statement.
«This is a concrete example that shows that actions under a European Health Union go beyond EU borders, supporting the strengthening of preparedness and response to health emergencies worldwide,» the commissioner stressed.
Specifically, 4 of the 5 million euros have been allocated to the vaccine trial to cover the lack of funding estimated by the WHO to be able to carry out this phase and will allow the first person to receive the serum «soon». The remaining 1 million euros will be used for the therapeutic trial once the clinical trial protocol is finalized and approved.
The scientific evidence on safety and efficacy obtained from these projects will also support the marketing authorization to prevent and deal with future outbreaks, the EU executive has indicated in a statement.
To improve the resilience of supply chains, HERA is also exploring with Member States the possibility of supporting the sustainable production of these drugs once authorized.
The Commission has already provided €3.2 million in Uganda in emergency humanitarian aid in support of its efforts to combat the outbreak. Neighboring countries have also received emergency assistance for preparedness activities.
