By Bunmi Yekini
The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) and the World Health Organization (WHO) have called for an urgent expansion of the community-led Ebola response in the Democratic Republic of Congo, warning that the outbreak is spreading faster than current containment efforts.
The appeal followed a joint mission to Uganda and Congo on Aug. 4–5 led by WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Africa CDC Director-General Jean Kaseya and WHO Africa Regional Director Mohamed Janabi.
The delegation visited Kampala, Bunia and Kinshasa to assess the response, meet health workers and community leaders, and present operational findings to Congolese authorities.
As of Aug. 4, Congo had recorded 3,973 confirmed Ebola cases, 1,801 deaths and 776 recoveries across 51 health zones in five provinces. The country reported 99 new infections and 52 deaths in the latest 24-hour reporting period.
Health officials said contact follow-up had reached only 75%, well below the 95% target considered necessary to quickly identify and isolate new cases. A total of 674 patients were receiving care, while treatment centres in North Kivu were operating at 139% capacity.
The mission identified Ituri province, particularly the Bunia, Rwampara and Mongbwalu health zones, as the epicentre of the outbreak, accounting for nearly 90% of confirmed cases.
During a visit to Bunia, the delegation met provincial authorities, frontline responders and community representatives, and inspected the Rwangole Ebola Treatment Centre. Officials said insecurity, population displacement, poor road access, misinformation and shortages of essential supplies were hampering response efforts.
Tedros said the outbreak was outpacing the response in parts of eastern Congo and called for greater international support alongside stronger protection for civilians and health workers.
“In some areas of eastern DRC, the Ebola outbreak is outpacing our response, making it imperative that we rapidly scale up every aspect of our efforts to contain it,” he said.
Kaseya said communities would determine whether transmission chains are broken, stressing the need for trusted local leaders to encourage early reporting of symptoms and timely access to care.
Africa CDC and WHO urged authorities and partners to strengthen early case detection, expand laboratory and treatment capacity, improve infection prevention, ensure timely payment and protection for frontline health workers, and accelerate the release of funding to affected communities.
The organizations also praised Uganda’s successful containment of its recent Ebola outbreak, which ended on July 28 after 20 confirmed cases and two deaths, saying it demonstrated the value of rapid detection, coordinated response and strong community engagement.
Despite the regional risk posed by continued transmission in Congo, both agencies said they do not recommend unnecessary travel or trade restrictions, urging neighbouring countries instead to reinforce surveillance and cross-border preparedness.