WHO chief warns Ebola threat in DRC's North Kivu continues to rise

Kinshasa — The Democratic Republic of Congo is confronting a renewed Ebola emergency as the number of confirmed cases in North Kivu province has risen sharply, World Health Organization (WHO) Director‑General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus warned on Tuesday. While the outbreak that began in August 2022 has been largely contained in other regions, the latest surge in the eastern province has pushed the national tally to over 250 confirmed infections, with a case‑fatality rate approaching 70 percent.

Health authorities report that 78 new cases were confirmed in the past week, predominantly in the districts of Beni and Butembo, where health infrastructure is already strained by ongoing conflict and displacement. WHO and the Congolese Ministry of Health have intensified vaccination campaigns, deploying more than 300,000 doses of the rVSV‑ZEBOV vaccine and mobilising additional rapid‑response teams to conduct contact tracing and safe burial practices. However, logistical hurdles, community mistrust, and intermittent security incidents have hampered efforts to reach remote villages, prompting Tedros to call for increased international support and funding to sustain the response.

The WHO emphasized that, despite the alarming uptick in North Kivu, progress in other provinces demonstrates the effectiveness of coordinated public‑health measures when resources are adequate. Officials said that maintaining surveillance, expanding vaccine coverage, and securing safe corridors for health workers remain critical to preventing further spread and ultimately ending the outbreak.