The Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo remains extremely serious as total confirmed cases surpass 6,000, according to the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Health officials warn the epidemic is spreading rapidly beyond its epicenter, driven by regional conflict and displacement.
Epidemic Widens Across Six Provinces and Dozens of Zones
The current Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo remains extremely serious amid continuous transmission. Jean Kaseya, the director-general of Africa CDC, said that when the outbreak was declared on May 15, it affected just one province and two health zones. Since then, the virus has spread across 60 health zones in six provinces.
That footprint covers roughly 240,000 square kilometers, an area comparable to the size of the United Kingdom and nearly five times the size of Switzerland. Affected regions include Haut-Uele, Ituri, North Kivu, South Kivu, Bas-Uele, and Tshopo provinces.
According to government figures released on Thursday, 6,843 cases have been reported, including 3,310 deaths. Ituri province remains the hardest-hit area with more than 5,400 cases, while North Kivu has recorded over 1,000 cases. The Health Ministry reported that 1,409 people have recovered, while 830 patients remain in isolation or hospital care.
Contrasting Trends Between Epicenter and Neighboring Regions
While transmission is declining in the most affected parts of Ituri province, the epidemic is accelerating elsewhere. In recent weeks, new cases and deaths have dropped in Ituri but risen sharply in neighboring North Kivu and Haut-Uele.
In North Kivu, new cases more than doubled to 381 in the latest three-week period, up from 165 in the preceding period. Yap Boum, Africa CDC’s head of emergency preparedness and response, highlighted the rapid pace of the spread during a briefing.
The World Health Organization noted that the outbreak is the second-largest Ebola epidemic ever recorded, trailing only the 2014–2016 West Africa outbreak that killed more than 11,000 people. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus stated that the epidemic is far from under control
and is spreading faster than any previous one.
Armed Conflict, Displacement, and Unreported Cases Hinder Response
Response efforts face severe operational hurdles on the ground. Eastern Congo suffers from armed conflict, including active fighting between government forces and Rwanda-backed M23 rebels who control the provincial capital of Goma. That insecurity restricts border crossings, delays medical supplies, and limits humanitarian access.
The virus has reached two additional health zones in North Kivu amid the ongoing fighting. Compounding these challenges are displacement sites where residents live in precarious conditions, alongside a health workers’ strike and intense population movements.
Maximilian Gertler, a tropical medicine specialist at Berlin’s Charité hospital who previously served with Doctors Without Borders during the West Africa epidemic and in Congo, warned that official numbers likely undercount the true toll. We have to assume that many cases—and even deaths—are not being recorded at all,
Gertler said, pointing to a lack of rapid testing and laboratory access in remote, insecure rural areas.
Vaccination Trials and Treatment Capacities Expand
Medical teams are scaling up treatment infrastructure across the affected provinces. Doctors Without Borders operates seven treatment centers and numerous isolation wards in Ituri, North Kivu, South Kivu, and Tshopo, providing roughly 430 beds and more than 1,400 staff members.
On the immunization front, Congo began vaccinating health and frontline workers last month using Merck’s Ervebo vaccine, which proved effective against the Zaire strain of Ebola. More than 3,000 healthcare and frontline workers have received doses so far.
However, Ervebo’s effectiveness against the Bundibugyo virus driving the current outbreak remains unproven. Consequently, WHO issued new emergency guidance stating that Ervebo should only be used within research protocols for Bundibugyo outbreaks.
Clinical trials are underway to evaluate vaccines for the Bundibugyo strain. Placide Mbala Kingebeni, Africa CDC’s director for research, clinical trials, and innovation, reported that vaccination trials started in Tshopo, Haut-Uele, and Bas-Uele provinces. Congo has received 70,000 doses so far, though limited supplies remain a key challenge for the rollout.
Next Steps and Outlook for the Months Ahead
Vaccination campaigns in Ituri province are scheduled to begin next week. Meanwhile, health authorities are preparing to launch observational studies and mid-to-late-stage trials led by Congo’s National Institute of Biomedical Research alongside international partners.
These trials will assess Ervebo alongside alternative vaccine candidates specifically targeting Bundibugyo Ebola, including options developed by Moderna and the University of Oxford.