Democratic Republic of the Congo health authorities report that the country’s ongoing Ebola outbreak has recorded 4,018 deaths among 8,300 confirmed cases across seven provinces since May, making it the fastest-growing outbreak of the virus on record.
Workers carrying placards reading No money, no data!
and No payment for months
have organized strikes demanding back pay as the epidemic strains local health systems and sparks protests over unpaid wages for frontline personnel.
Displacement camps housing thousands have faced destruction during security operations.
The World Health Organization designated the health crisis a Public Health Emergency of International Concern, establishing its highest level of alert as cases multiplied across dozens of health zones. Unlike past epidemics driven by the Zaire ebolavirus strain—for which licensed vaccines such as Ervebo and specific monoclonal antibody treatments exist—the current Bundibugyo outbreak features no approved vaccines or targeted treatments. Frontline containment efforts continue to rely on traditional containment tools, including rapid case identification, isolation and care, contact tracing, safe burials, and community engagement. Clinical trials evaluating potential treatments, such as the PARTNERS trial, have begun patient enrollment in Ituri province facilities, while a clinical trial evaluating the Ervebo vaccine is being tested, mainly among health workers.
North Kivu Becomes the Epicenter
In North Kivu province, which now accounts for roughly 40 percent of newly confirmed cases, the outbreak has overwhelmed local treatment facilities according to Dr. Kayesa.
More than 70 percent of new infections originate outside of known contact lists, and at least 60 percent of deaths occur outside designated treatment centers.
Local officials and health personnel have faced direct security threats, including an attack on Marie-Célestin Karondwa, a local official with Congo’s ruling Union for Democracy and Social Progress party at his home in Butembo. Médecins Sans Frontières reported that an aid worker was infected with the virus while working in Congo and required emergency medical evacuation to the Netherlands.
North Kivu’s case fatality rate is the highest among Congo’s seven affected provinces, with more than half of patients dying in nine of the province’s 17 impacted health zones.
Desperate patients have increasingly turned to regular health facilities for help, forcing local staff to choose between turning community members away or exposing themselves to the virus.
Orphaned Children Face Extreme Vulnerability
The epidemic has separated or orphaned more than 1,900 children across eastern Congo since May, with 1,581 identified in Ituri and 322 in North Kivu as reported by UNICEF.
Children account for over one in four confirmed cases and roughly one in three deaths. Among children under five with confirmed infections, seven in ten have died.
Elmi highlighted the extreme vulnerability of infants during a visit to the epicenter in Bunia, pointing to young survivors like Lina, a seven-month-old baby who survived the virus after losing her mother. Child protection specialists emphasize the critical need to establish specialized nurseries within every Ebola Treatment Centre to protect young children and give parents the confidence to seek timely medical care.
UNICEF is currently seeking US$150.8 million for its Ebola response, with the Democratic Republic of the Congo operation requiring US$113.4 million. To date, only US$40.1 million of that domestic requirement has been mobilized.
Virus Crosses International Borders
The United States has not deployed Centers for Disease Control and Prevention teams into affected communities in the manner seen during previous outbreaks.
Julien Harneis emphasized the cumulative toll of destroyed infrastructure.
When we lose a centre, that means we lose capacity, we lose investment and we have to start again. And above all, it means that people do not get access to the care that they really need.