Indonesian Health Experts Urge Stronger Ebola Preparedness Following WHO Emergency Declaration
Jakarta, The Gulf Observer: Indonesian health policy experts have urged the government to strengthen national preparedness measures against Ebola following the World Health Organization’s declaration of the outbreak as a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC), warning that the disease could escalate into a global crisis similar to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Mustakim, project manager for community-based surveillance at the Indonesian Health Policy Space, said the WHO designation had heightened international concern even though Indonesia has not recorded any confirmed Ebola cases.
Speaking in Jakarta on Tuesday, Mustakim stressed that the emergency status should be viewed as a serious global warning rather than a symbolic declaration.
“The PHEIC status is not merely a label, but a warning that Ebola carries a high risk of developing into a global health crisis like COVID-19,” he said.
He emphasized the need for Indonesia to adopt preventive measures instead of waiting to respond after infections emerge, noting that Ebola has historically recorded fatality rates ranging from 25 percent to 90 percent during previous outbreaks.
According to Mustakim, as of May 16, 2026, health authorities had documented eight laboratory-confirmed Ebola cases, 246 suspected cases, and 80 suspected deaths in Ituri province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
He explained that Ebola can spread to humans through close contact with infected animals, including fruit bats, chimpanzees, forest antelopes, and porcupines found dead or ill in rainforest regions.
Human-to-human transmission occurs through direct exposure to the blood or bodily fluids of infected individuals, as well as contact with contaminated materials such as blood, feces, or vomit.
Mustakim noted that infected individuals are not contagious before symptoms appear, but remain capable of transmitting the virus as long as it is present in their bloodstream.
Although Indonesia has never reported a confirmed Ebola infection, he said the government has maintained strict surveillance systems coordinated by the Health Ministry to prevent imported cases.
Authorities have also strengthened monitoring at international entry points, intensified early warning systems in cooperation with the World Health Organization, and prepared national referral laboratories to test suspected Ebola samples.
Separately, global health security researcher Fauzi Budi Satria from the University of North Sumatra said recent outbreaks of zoonotic diseases, including Ebola and hantavirus, had exposed continuing weaknesses in global pandemic preparedness systems.
He acknowledged that emergency health response capacities worldwide had improved significantly since the COVID-19 pandemic, making many countries better prepared for future outbreaks.
However, Budi warned that preparedness and response mechanisms for zoonotic diseases capable of triggering future pandemics still remained inadequate in several areas.
He added that the current Ebola outbreak in Africa should serve as a crucial test of Indonesia’s readiness to implement new health regulations and emergency response systems introduced after lessons learned during the COVID-19 pandemic.
