The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs has approved up to $60 million from its emergency response fund to support efforts aimed at containing the ongoing Ebola outbreak linked to the rare Bundibugyo virus strain in Central Africa.
The announcement was made on Friday by Tom Fletcher, the UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, in a statement shared on X.
The emergency intervention comes five days after the World Health Organization declared the outbreak a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC), warning that there is currently no approved vaccine or targeted treatment for the Bundibugyo Ebola strain spreading across parts of Central Africa.
UN Moves to Strengthen Ebola Containment Efforts
Fletcher said the UN was acting swiftly to strengthen containment operations and prevent the outbreak from escalating further across the region.
“We need to get ahead of this Ebola outbreak. I am allocating up to $60 million from the United Nations Central Emergency Response Fund to accelerate the response in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the wider region,” he stated.
According to him, additional personnel from UN agencies and humanitarian partners are also being deployed to reinforce response operations in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda and South Sudan.
Fletcher commended local communities and frontline health workers involved in efforts to contain the outbreak despite difficult operating conditions marked by armed conflict and heavy population movement.
He noted that humanitarian agencies were working to ensure safe and uninterrupted access for frontline responders, including in territories controlled by armed groups.
“We are applying lessons from previous outbreaks. Containment depends on fast, coordinated action at community level. We need strong communication with governments, and effective early warning and detection systems. Community trust is essential,” he added.
Ebola Cases and Death Toll Continue to Rise
On May 17, the WHO declared the outbreak a global health emergency after confirmed infections linked to the Bundibugyo strain were recorded in Ituri Province in eastern DR Congo before spreading to Kampala through infected travellers arriving from Congo.
At the time of the declaration, health authorities confirmed eight laboratory-confirmed cases, 246 suspected infections and 80 suspected deaths across at least three health zones in Ituri Province, including Bunia, Rwampara and Mongbwalu.
However, updated figures released by health authorities indicate that the outbreak has now resulted in about 160 suspected deaths from more than 670 suspected cases.
No Approved Vaccine for Bundibugyo Ebola Strain
The Bundibugyo ebolavirus remains one of the rarest Ebola species known to infect humans and currently has no approved vaccine or targeted treatment.
The strain has only been associated with two previous outbreaks — first in Uganda in 2007 and later in eastern DR Congo in 2012.
Most existing Ebola vaccines and antibody therapies were developed specifically for the more widespread and deadlier Zaire Ebola strain, which triggered the 2014–2016 West African Ebola epidemic that claimed more than 11,000 lives.
The Democratic Republic of the Congo has recorded more than a dozen Ebola outbreaks over the last five decades and is regarded globally as one of the most experienced countries in Ebola surveillance, containment and emergency response operations.
