DR Congo Ebola Outbreak Remains Far From Control, WHO Warns

The Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is spreading at an alarming rate and remains far from being brought under control, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has warned.

WHO Director-General, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, issued the warning on Tuesday during an emergency meeting on the outbreak, saying the situation was progressing faster than previous Ebola epidemics and could spread to more countries.

According to him, health authorities are still struggling to contain the outbreak because it had gained significant momentum before control measures were fully implemented.

The DRC government reported on Monday that more than 2,300 people had died from nearly 5,000 reported cases, making the current outbreak the deadliest Ebola epidemic in the country’s history.

The outbreak, officially declared on May 15, is the DRC’s 17th Ebola outbreak and is believed to have been spreading for several weeks before it was detected.

Several affected areas in northern and eastern DRC face major challenges, including weak government presence, inadequate healthcare infrastructure and the activities of armed groups that have operated in the region for years.

The WHO emergency committee held its second meeting on Tuesday after declaring the outbreak a Public Health Emergency of International Concern on May 17.

The health agency currently rates the public health risk as “very high” nationally in the DRC, “high” in Uganda and other neighbouring countries, and “low” across the rest of Africa and the wider world.

Ebola cases have been recorded in six provinces of the DRC, including areas close to the South Sudan border, while neighbouring Uganda has also reported cases.

Ghebreyesus warned that the possibility of further spread within the DRC and across international borders remains high.

The current outbreak has already surpassed the previous deadliest Ebola outbreak in the DRC, which occurred between 2018 and 2020 and killed 2,299 people from 3,381 confirmed cases.

The deadliest Ebola outbreak on record occurred in West Africa between 2013 and 2016, claiming more than 11,300 lives, mainly in Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea.

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