Congo-Kinshasa: DR Congo Ebola Response Making Progress, but More Support Urgently Needed, Senior Ebola Coordinator Says

What the report says

At a United Nations press briefing in Geneva on 15 September 2026, Julien Harneis, the UN’s senior Ebola coordinator, said the Ebola response in the Democratic Republic of the Congo is making progress in some areas but still urgently needs more international support. According to the OCHA remarks carried by AllAfrica, he said the outbreak remains severe and geographically wide, with cases reported in places including Bunia in Ituri and Sud-Ubangi at the other end of the country.

Harneis described an unusually difficult operating environment shaped by poor roads, limited air access, conflict-affected zones and some attacks on aid workers and health facilities. He said response efforts are strongest in Ituri and Bunia, while transmission is still rising in places such as Butembo in North Kivu. He also highlighted cooperation among the Congolese government, the World Health Organization, UN agencies, NGOs and the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention.

The briefing said treatment capacity has expanded, with Ebola treatment centres increasing from about 900 beds to 1,340 over the past month. Harneis added that international coordination is also underway on therapies, post-exposure prophylaxis and vaccines that are expected to enter clinical trials. He stressed, however, that the response will only succeed if it is fully funded.

He called for more money for the government’s Ebola plan, for WHO operations and for the broader humanitarian response, which he said is only 49% funded. He argued that Ebola also worsens hunger, disrupts care and increases health risks for people in affected communities.