According to the latest figures from health officials in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Ebola outbreak in the country has recorded 3,360 confirmed cases, with 1,487 deaths — a fatality rate of roughly 45%. The outbreak has now spread across five provinces in the east of the country and is being described as the fastest-spreading epidemic in the recorded history of the Ebola virus.
The disease is caused by the Bundibugyo strain of the virus, officially announced by Congolese authorities on May 15. Since then, the virus has spread more quickly than any of the 16 previous Ebola outbreaks in the country. The number of cases is now approaching the record level of the 2018–2020 epidemic, when 3,470 people in Congo were infected.
Professor Pierre Akilimali of the Congo National Institute of Public Health, who is leading the Ebola response, said the outbreak continues to expand and it is hard to predict when it will peak. He stressed that there is still a long way to go before the disease is brought under control.
“Here in Ituri, we face issues of insecurity, mining activity and high population density, which makes the current outbreak more complex than previous ones,” Akilimali said.
Congolese authorities say they have rolled out a range of measures to curb the spread, including stronger surveillance through community liaison workers, the construction of more than 20 Ebola treatment centers, and the establishment of local testing laboratories. Akilimali urged residents to seek medical advice as soon as they show symptoms, so that the response can be more effective.
The country is still recording between 100 and 150 new infections per week in the health zones of Bunia and Rwampara. Local residents are living in fear. Annabelle Nissi, a clothes seller in Bunia, said: “This disease is causing us immense suffering. Our only hope is in God’s hands. It keeps disrupting our lives and stalling development projects.”
Dr. Justus Nsio, field incident manager for the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, acknowledged this is a race against time. “All experts monitoring this outbreak agree that the disease was detected too late. When detection is delayed, we have to work harder to make up for lost ground and contain the epidemic,” Nsio said.
Clinical trials for a vaccine against the Bundibugyo strain began in early July, at a time when there is still no standard treatment for this particular virus. By July 15, around 20 people had been enrolled in the trials, which are expected to last up to four months, according to Professor Placide Mbala, who runs laboratory operations for the Ebola response in Congo.
Uganda, a neighboring country that this week declared an end to its own Ebola outbreak, has sent experts to Congo to work alongside local colleagues, particularly in the border areas of Tchomia and Kasenyi.
