Ebola in eastern DRC spreading faster than response efforts
Center the response around women and girls, who currently make up two thirds of suspected cases.
Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo, May 26, 2026 — An International Rescue Committee (IRC) alert warns that a fast-moving Ebola outbreak in eastern DRC risks becoming the deadliest on record unless the international community acts immediately.
In a Watchlist Flash Alert issued today, the IRC highlights three stark dangers: the epidemic is outpacing the response; persistent conflict and displacement are raising the chance of cross-border spread; and deep cuts to global aid have left health systems in eastern DRC far weaker than they were during the 2018-2020 epidemic.
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“The warning signs are flashing red,” said Bob Kitchen, Vice President of Emergencies for the IRC. “Eastern DRC is confronting this outbreak more fragile and less prepared than during the 2018-2020 outbreak that killed more than 2,000 people- and with fewer resources to fight it. Increased conflict and cuts to global aid funding have dismantled defenses at exactly the wrong moment. The lesson from every previous outbreak is clear: delays cost lives. The risks are growing and the resources are shrinking; that is the brutal arithmetic facing global aid today.”
According to the IRC, the epidemic began in Ituri province but has already spread into North Kivu, South Kivu and across the border into Uganda. More than 900 suspected cases and at least 223 deaths have now been reported across the DRC and Uganda, with infections detected in urban transport hubs including Bunia, Goma and Kampala—locations that raise the prospect of much wider transmission. The outbreak is linked to the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola, for which no approved vaccines or targeted treatments exist. Years of violence, mass displacement and reduced donor support have left eastern DRC less able to halt a large-scale outbreak than during previous epidemics.
The IRC stresses the situation remains containable, but only if governments, donors, UN agencies and humanitarian organizations coordinate rapidly with the Africa CDC to bolster frontline responders and affected communities. The organization is urging five immediate actions to avert a regional catastrophe:
Establish a UN coordinator, through OCHA and WHO, to partner with the Africa CDC to lead the regional response. This complicated and international response requires a senior expert, embedded within the existing UN structure.
Remove all barriers to resourcing an effective response. Restrictions on importing PPE must be relaxed instantly. Accreditation must be expedited for specialist NGOs with experience responding to Ebola. IRC is urging all parties to ensure safe humanitarian access and the rapid delivery of critical medical supplies, while emphasizing that community trust and engagement will be essential to containing the outbreak.
Surge funding immediately to strengthen frontline healthcare, surveillance and treatment centers.
Center the response around women and girls, who currently make up two thirds of suspected cases.
Invest in the DRC’s healthcare system long term. Years of underfunding and the withdrawal of donor support have left eastern DRC without the tools needed to catch a disease like Ebola before it takes hold.
Drawing on its long experience with Ebola and other infectious disease responses across Africa, the IRC says it has activated operations in the DRC, distributing critical personal protective equipment. In Uganda, the IRC is supporting the Ministry of Health with EU funding at border points to boost screening and infection prevention and control measures for people crossing into the country.
The IRC’s Emergency Watchlist is an annual report that identifies countries most at risk of worsening humanitarian crises in the year ahead. Combining data analysis with field expertise from IRC teams worldwide, the Watchlist flags where conflict, climate shocks, displacement, economic instability and political fragility are likely to drive humanitarian need. Flash Alerts are rapid analyses published in response to fast-moving crises or developments that could sharply worsen conditions and require urgent international attention.
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