The World Health Organization (WHO) recently sounded an alarm regarding the current Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), noting its « exceptional intensification » and urging a significant scale-up of health responses. Congolese authorities have reported 3,874 confirmed cases and 1,751 fatalities since the epidemic began. This current crisis follows the nation’s deadliest Ebola outbreak between 2018 and 2020, which claimed nearly 2,300 lives among 3,500 recorded infections.
In response to the escalating health crisis, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the Director-General of the World Health Organization, arrived in Kinshasa, the capital of the DRC, on Tuesday. He was scheduled to hold discussions on Wednesday with Congolese President Félix Tshisekedi regarding the ongoing situation.
The WHO chief had previously visited Ituri (northeast) at the end of May, a region identified as the current epidemic’s epicenter, accounting for nearly 90% of all reported cases. This particular outbreak is attributed to the Bundibugyo variant of Ebola, for which no specific vaccine or treatment is currently available. The disease is affecting areas characterized by a fragile state presence and severely underdeveloped health infrastructure.
Tarik Jasarevic, a spokesperson for the WHO, stated on Tuesday that « the epidemic regrettably continues to spread at a pace that overwhelms response capabilities. » He emphasized the critical need for increased financial support and resources to bolster « treatment capacities, strengthen field investigation teams, and ensure safe burial practices. »
Ebola, a highly contagious hemorrhagic fever transmitted through contact with bodily fluids, has tragically claimed more than 15,000 people across Africa in the past five decades. Over the last two months, the ongoing outbreak has expanded its reach across five provinces within the DRC: (Ituri, Nord-Kivu, Sud-Kivu, Haut-Uélé, and Tshopo).
On Tuesday, Canada granted authorization to the American pharmaceutical giant Moderna to commence clinical trials for a vaccine specifically targeting the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola. Additionally, the vaccine presented by the WHO as « the most promising, » the « rVSV Bundibugyo, » is slated for development by Singapore-based Hilleman Laboratories.
Towards the end of July, a volunteer received the initial dose of a different Bundibugyo vaccine developed by the University of Oxford (United Kingdom), utilizing technology similar to AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 vaccine. Concurrently, various initiatives are rapidly testing treatments against the Bundibugyo strain, including the antiviral medications remdesivir and obeldesivir, alongside a monoclonal antibody designated MBP134.
The Democratic Republic of Congo formally declared its 17th Ebola epidemic on May 15, a declaration made several weeks after the outbreak began affecting its immense territory, home to more than 100 million inhabitants.
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