KINSHASA, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO / MENA Newswire / — World Health Organization (WHO) Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus arrived in Kinshasa to support the response to an Ebola outbreak caused by the Bundibugyo virus, saying the disease “can be stopped” while warning that the operation remains complex in eastern Congo. The outbreak has affected areas facing armed conflict, displacement, food insecurity and limited access to health services.
Congolese authorities reported 1,028 suspected Ebola cases as of Friday, up from 906 a day earlier, Health Minister Samuel Roger Kamba said. The number of confirmed cases stood at 225, while earlier reporting by health authorities listed confirmed deaths in Congo and a larger number of suspected deaths under investigation. Uganda has also reported confirmed infections linked to the outbreak, including cases associated with travel from Congo.
The WHO has said the current outbreak involves the Bundibugyo strain, a less common form of Ebola disease for which there are no approved strain specific vaccines or therapeutics. Confirmed cases have been reported in Ituri, North Kivu and South Kivu provinces, with Uganda also recording infections. Health officials have said the disease likely circulated for weeks before it was identified in mid May.
Response expands
Tedros said the response requires work with local communities, including efforts to build trust, protect health workers and encourage early reporting of symptoms. Ebola can spread through direct contact with the body fluids of infected people or contaminated materials, and response teams typically focus on isolation, contact tracing, safe care, infection prevention and medically supervised burials to limit further transmission.
The WHO declared the Ebola outbreak in Congo and Uganda a public health emergency of international concern on May 17, citing international spread, uncertainty over transmission chains and risks linked to mobility across borders. The agency said the event required coordinated surveillance, laboratory testing, clinical management, community engagement and cross border public health measures.
Strain complicates control
Health officials have described the Bundibugyo outbreak as difficult because approved tools used for other Ebola strains do not directly apply to this one. The WHO has estimated the fatality rate among confirmed Bundibugyo cases at 30 percent to 50 percent, while noting that available figures remain under investigation. A first confirmed patient in Congo was discharged after two negative tests, and testing capacity is being increased to process pending samples.
The outbreak is Congo’s latest Ebola emergency since the virus was first identified in the country in 1976. The Democratic Republic of Congo health ministry, Uganda’s Ministry of Health and international medical teams are working on case detection, treatment sites and community outreach. Tedros said the outbreak can be brought under control through cooperation with communities and sustained public health measures in the affected provinces.