The Democratic Republic of Congo’s worsening Ebola outbreak can still be brought under control within three months, a World Health Organisation official said on Tuesday. But he warned that success will depend on whether enough resources reach the response.
The outbreak has become the deadliest in Congo’s history and the second-deadliest Ebola outbreak ever recorded. At least 2,325 people have died, according to figures reported this week. The virus has also spread to a sixth province, adding to the pressure on health teams trying to contain it.
Thierno Balde, the WHO incident manager, said the three-month target remained possible if the response received the support it needed.
“About the next plan for the three months, yes, if you have the necessary resources, I think it will be possible to do that,” Mr Balde told reporters from Bunia, in eastern Congo.
The optimism comes against a difficult backdrop.
The WHO is seeking $115 million for the Ebola response but has secured about 60 per cent of that amount, according to the agency. Delays in detecting cases, overstretched surveillance teams and continuing armed conflict have made it harder to track and isolate infections. The current outbreak is caused by the Bundibugyo strain, for which there is no approved vaccine.
Health authorities have nevertheless stepped up their response. About 400 additional beds have been added in the past two weeks, while more epidemiologists are being sent to help trace people who may have been exposed to the virus.
“The situation is quite difficult, but people are working here day and night trying to control this outbreak,” Mr Balde said.
But other health officials have offered a more cautious assessment.
Between 70 and 80 per cent of newly reported cases have no known connection to previous patients, according to officials cited by Reuters. That suggests transmission is continuing outside established chains of infection.
“We are far from discovering the magnitude of this outbreak,” said Dr Wessam Mankoula, head of emergency preparedness and response at the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention.
Dr Mankoula warned that the outbreak would not be over “in a few weeks or even months”.
The outbreak was declared on May 15 and has spread rapidly through eastern and north-eastern parts of Congo. By mid-August, health authorities had reported more than 4,900 confirmed cases and 2,300 deaths, surpassing the toll from the country’s 2018–2020 Ebola outbreak.
The WHO’s Emergency Committee is also reviewing the international response. The committee is expected to decide whether to maintain the outbreak’s classification as a public health emergency of international concern and issue further recommendations to affected countries.
For communities in eastern Congo, the challenge is not simply stopping the next case. Health workers must find infections that have already gone undetected, trace contacts across difficult terrain and conflict-affected areas, and persuade people to seek care early.
The WHO says the outbreak can still be controlled. But the widening geographic spread and the large number of cases with no clear link to known infections show just how difficult that goal has become.
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