South Sudan secures funding for Intensive Disease Unit

By Simon Deng

South Sudan has secured funding to run the Infectious Disease Unit for a third of the year, Dr. John Rumunu, the COVID-19 Incident Manager at the country’s Ministry of Health said.

The Infectious Disease Unit is taking the lead in combatting COVID-19 in the country.

“We had challenges with funding of IDU in Juba but now we can say confidently that for the next four months, starting from March 1, 2022, we have good services in the IDU and we thank WHO for that development,” Rumunu told reporters on Sunday.

Rumunu did not specify the amount of funding.

He said COVID-19 testing is being embraced across the country.

Most cases are reported from Juba and Pamir in Ruweng Administrative Area with 56.1 and 24.6 percent respectively, Rumunu said.

“There is decrease in positivity from Gene Expert sites that is 8.6 percent in the week ending 6 February compared to 15.7 percent almost by half the preceding week,” he said.

Sacha Bootsma, the COVID-19 Incident Manager for the World Health Organization said efforts are in place to have functional health facilities across South Sudan.

“We have fully vaccinated 306,327 people in South Sudan, this is 2.3 percent of the total population, 42.1 percent are females,” said Bootsma.

South Sudan registered 7 new cases of COVID-19 as of Saturday, bringing the total cumulative confirmed cases to 16,896 with 13,077 recoveries and 137 deaths since April 5, 2020.