Congo-Kinshasa: UN Chief Condemns 'Indifference' As Ebola Cases Mount in DR Congo

What the report says

UN Secretary-General António Guterres has urged immediate action and more funding to confront a growing Ebola Bundibugyo outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, speaking at UN Headquarters in New York on Thursday, according to UN News as republished by AllAfrica. He said the response needs to accelerate as cases continue to rise in several affected provinces and humanitarian teams struggle to keep pace with the spread.

The article says the outbreak began in mid-May and has since led to more than 5,600 cases and 2,700 deaths in six provinces, with about 500 new cases reported each week. WHO is said to have slowed transmission but not yet reversed the trend. The UN chief warned that the response is only partly funded and called for an additional $1.1 billion, arguing that resources could run out just as operations need to expand.

AllAfrica’s source also highlights the wider challenge facing health workers in eastern Congo, where conflict, displacement and attacks on clinics and ambulances are complicating containment efforts. In Ituri province alone, large numbers of people have been displaced, and many others need aid and protection. More than 40 health workers have reportedly died in the response effort.

The report notes that UN agencies, local partners and civil society groups are expanding prevention and preparedness measures, including training, outreach through artists and influencers, and cross-border planning in Burundi, which has not reported confirmed cases but is considered at risk. The article also says neighboring Uganda’s Bundibugyo outbreak has been declared over.