15 May 2026
Ebola disease outbreak declared
DRC officially declares an Ebola disease outbreak in Ituri province, in the country’s northeast. Uganda Ministry of Health declares the Ebola disease outbreak in Uganda.
What MSF Is Doing in Response to the Ebola Disease Outbreak in the DRC and Uganda
Updates from our teams who are responding to the Ebola disease outbreak in the DRC and Uganda.
Overview
On the weekend of 9-10 May, Doctors Without Borders (MSF) received alerts of an increased number of deaths from a suspected viral haemorraghic fever in Mongwalu health zone, an area northwest of Bunia, the capital of Ituri province, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). This marks the 17th recorded Ebola disease outbreak in DRC since the virus was first identified in 1976. In collaboration with the Ministry of Health (MOH), a team went to assess the situation and found that 55 people had died since the beginning of April. MSF also received subsequent reports that cases had been identified in Bunia and Rwampara health zones.
Several suspected and confirmed cases have been reported in North Kivu province and in Goma. Two suspected cases were reported at Kyeshero hospital, which is already supported by MSF for paediatrics, nutrition, and isolation in the context of outbreaks such as measles or cholera. One patient continues to be treated at the hospital. MSF collaborated closely with the local health authorities since the suspicion of these cases and continues to do so since their admission to Kyeshero hospital.
Cases began weeks ago, and today the epidemiological situation is unclear and evolving extremely quickly. One of our biggest concerns is that we do not really know the full picture due to lack of diagnostics and underreporting of cases. Additionally, this is a highly insecure region with significant population movement across borders with South Sudan and Uganda, driven by ongoing armed conflict as well as mining activities and trade, which may accelerate transmission and complicate efforts to contain the outbreak. Infection prevention control measures in many health facilities - already under strain and under-resourced - are not adequate to manage Ebola cases.
Which strain of Ebola is it, and what do we know about it?
We are not dealing with a “strain”, but with a virus. "Ebola disease" is a disease caused by any different viruses within the genus of Orthoebolavirus. The most well-known viruses are Ebola virus, Sudan virus, and Bundibugyo virus. Unlike most Ebola disease outbreaks that occurred in the DRC, this one is caused by the Bundibugyo virus.
What is the Bundibugyo virus?
This is the third detected outbreak involving the Bundibugyo virus, following outbreaks in Uganda in 2007-2008 and in DRC in 2012. The Bundibugyo virus was first identified in 2007 in Bundibugyo district in western Uganda, during which 131 cases were reported with 42 deaths. The estimated case fatality rate of the Bundibugyo virus is between 25 and 40 percent. In the two previously known outbreaks of Bundibugyo virus disease, the case fatality rate was lower than the more common and deadly Ebola virus.
How is MSF responding?
MSF has vast experience in responding to Ebola disease outbreaks and is mobilising a large-scale response to support and in collaboration with the DRC authorities. We have been an active partner in the response in many of these, including the Bundibugyo virus disease outbreak of 2012, as well as the one in Uganda in 2007. Our teams are working around the clock to prepare a large-scale response in DRC, in collaboration with the Congolese health authorities. We are currently deploying medical and logistics emergency staff. Essential medical supplies and equipment are currently en route to affected areas from Kinshasa, Uganda and Europe.
MSF response in Ebola disease outbreak
MSF Geneva Operational Centre Response in DRC
In Mongbwalu, where the first cluster of suspected cases were reported, in collaboration with the MoH, MSF will set up an Ebola Treatment Centre (ETC), provide surveillance support, support other health facilities through triage, and implementation of infection prevention and control (IPC) measures, and conduct community outreach and health promotion activities. MSF staff with experience responding to Ebola disease outbreaks have started arriving in DRC to set up a full response and provide support to all existing projects and respond to new alerts in surrounding areas. Around 50 international mobile staff will soon be arriving in affected locations, to work alongside around 480 locally hired staff. 3,000 sets of personal protective equipment (PPE) arrived in Bunia on 19 May. Another 60,000 sets of PPE are due to arrive from Europe by the end of next week. Two full Ebola kits are also en route to DRC. Protecting staff and patients through safeguarding, duty of care and Ebola prevention measures while ensuring continued access to essential healthcare services will also be among the priorities. (Last update 22/05/2026)
MSF Brussels Operational Centre Response in DRC
We are sending teams and materials to Ituri to support and scale up the response. On Friday, 22 May, 8 tons of materials (medicines, PPE, generators, and solar panels) were dispatched from Kinshasa to Bunia. Extra shipping from Kinshasa to Bunia will occur on Saturday 23 and Monday 25, including vehicles. From Belgium, 68 tons of materials will be sent to Bunia on Thursday, 28 May. A first team of emergency responders from the Pool d’Urgence Congo (PUC) arrived on 20 May. More people, including international staff, are en route to Bunia. These teams will support the medical response in Bunia and Rwampara, with the possibility of extending support to neighbouring health areas. (Last update 22/05/2026)
MSF Paris Operational Centre Response in DRC
Our teams are currently working to rehabilitate an Ebola treatment center at the Munigi site in Goma. The center will have a capacity of 80 beds; some will be used to treat suspected cases, while others will be reserved for patients confirmed to have Ebola. The allocation of beds will be adapted based on how the situation evolves. We are also establishing an isolation ward in the Kyeshero hospital (which we already support with paediatric, nutrition and isolation in normal times. Our team also supported the isolation and training of the medical staff of Kyeshero hospital to Ebola case management. Following the confirmation of one case in Beni and Butembo, MSF sent a medical and logistic team to start an assessment and identify potential needs and gaps, in collaboration with MoH. (Last update: 22/05/2026)
MSF Amsterdam Operational Centre Response in DRC
In Goma, OCA is working under the lead of OCP in the setup of the ETC in Munigi near Goma with a focus on water and sanitation. Additionally, we are strengthening existing programs in North and South Kivu, setting up triage in existing health facilities we support to start early detections/ isolation and ensuring training of staff. (Last update: 22/05/2026)
MSF Barcelona-Athens Operational Centre Response in DRC
One confirmed case in South Kivu. Discussions with MoH for potential support including all different pillars of the response. OCBA will prioritize, according to available resources, strengthening case management including isolation capacity in Bukavu and in Miti Murhesa, epidemiological surveillance, outreach and alert investigation, training of MSF and MoH staff, as well as Red Cross on safe burials. (Last update: 22/05/2026)
MSF Paris Operational Centre Response in Uganda
On 16 May, MSF informed the Ugandan MoH that it is ready to intervene to support the public health authorities’ response, if needed. Other discussions followed up and a formal letter of proposal In the past, MSF has intervened on several occasions in the country to support the Ugandan Ministry of Health in its response to Ebola disease outbreaks, notably to care for sick patients or contacts, set up Ebola treatment units, or improve infection prevention and control measures. The last Ebola disease outbreak in the country occurred in 2025. (Last update: 22/05/2026)
You can support our teams as they respond in the DRC and Uganda
msf.org.zaIf you're wondering: Where can you donate to support Ebola disease outbreak response in South Africa? Our teams are working around the clock with the Congolese health authorities to prepare a large-scale response in the DRC. Emergency medical and logistics staff are being deployed, while essential supplies and equipment are on their way from Kinshasa, Uganda, and Europe to support urgent needs in affected areas. With decades of experience responding to Ebola disease outbreaks, donations help us deliver emergency medical care quickly during fast-moving crises.
Donate to a trusted organisation in South AfricaWhat to know about the 2026 Ebola disease outbreak
Early symptoms can include fever, fatigue, muscle pain, headache, and sore throat. These can be followed by vomiting, diarrhoea, rash, and, in some cases, bleeding. Anyone with symptoms should seek care immediately and avoid contact with others. There is no universally proven cure for Ebola disease, but early detection and supportive medical care significantly improve survival.
Ebola disease is an infectious viral hemorrhagic fever, transmitted to humans through direct contact with blood, secretions, organs, or other bodily fluids of infected animals. Human-to-human transmission occurs through close contact with the bodily fluids of infected individuals.
There are currently two approved vaccines against Ebola disease, but neither is approved for use in cases of infection with the Bundibugyo virus. The Ervebo vaccine (rVSV-ZEBOV) can be used to limit the spread of the disease through a so-called “ring vaccination” strategy, meaning it is administered to people who have been in contact with an infected individual, secondary contacts, and healthcare workers. Another vaccine can be used both during outbreaks for people at risk of exposure to the virus, and as a preventive measure before outbreaks for frontline responders or those living in areas not yet affected by the outbreak.
However, these two vaccines are currently approved only against the most common virus responsible for Ebola disease (the “Ebola virus” formerly called the “Zaire virus”), which notably caused the devastating outbreak in West Africa between 2014 and 2016. Discussions are underway within the WHO to determine which vaccine candidates could be tested in emergency clinical trials against the Bundibugyo virus, as has been done in previous Ebola disease outbreaks. MSF is ready to contribute to this research, as it did during the trials conducted in the DRC in 2019. Those trials led to the approval and market release of two vaccines and treatments.
There is currently no approved treatment for patients with Ebola disease caused by the Bundibugyo virus. The two monoclonal antibody treatments, approved following clinical trials conducted in the DRC between 2018 and 2020, are also specific to the Ebola virus (formerly known as Zaire virus) and are not effective or approved for the Bundibugyo virus. Nevertheless, there are antiviral drugs and monoclonal antibody candidates for Bundibugyo virus whose efficacy has yet to be proven in clinical trials. Discussions are ongoing between Congolese health authorities, WHO and the company that produces this specific therapy to get started.
In the absence of targeted treatment, patient care relies primarily on symptom management and supportive care aimed at improving patients’ chances of survival: fluid replacement, oxygen therapy, and monitoring of blood and cardiac parameters. During the two previous outbreaks, the estimated case fatality rate for the Bundibugyo virus ranged from 25% to 40%.
It is difficult to make comparisons at this very early stage, but it is indeed concerning that the numbers have already passed previous Bundibugyo outbreaks. Previous Ebola disease outbreaks due to the Bundibugyo virus occurred in 2007 in Uganda (131 cases and 42 deaths) and in DRC in 2012 (Orientale Province – 38 cases, 13 deaths) - source CDC.