The U.S. government has mobilised $13 million in foreign aid to support African countries including the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda amid a resurgence of the Ebola virus. 

The funds were mobilised within 48 hours of being notified of the outbreak, causing the U.S. to activate a contingency plan to limit the spread of the deadly disease which has already claimed over 100 lives in the DRC. The aid also covers safe burials for victims to prevent further transmission.

“This funding bolsters each country’s own response, supporting surveillance, laboratory capacity, risk communication, safe burials, entry and exit screening, and clinical case management,” the Department of State said in a statement on Monday.

The Department has also created an incident management system in Washington D.C. liasing with U.S  embassies in the DRC, Rwanda, South Sudan, and Uganda to monitor development and track any American citizens in the region.

The U.S. government is relying on investments made to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) to collaborate on response measures to the health emergency. 

The pooled funds from the UN and U.S. will facilitate the deployment of additional humanitarian assistance.

The American government was similarly coordinating donations from other international partners including the European Union and UK.

Of the $1.8 billion funding for OCHA pooled funds, the U.S. said it was allocating $250 million for the DRC and Uganda to contain the virus and mitigate its impact.