Full Breakdown
DRC Ebola Outbreak Shifts to New Provinces, MSF Warns
By Drooid · · How we work
Core Event: Ongoing Spread Despite Apparent Slowdown
Doctors Without Borders warned on Friday that the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is not shrinking but moving into provinces with weaker health-system capacity. While transmission appears to be slowing in the original epicenter of Ituri, new cases continue to rise nationally, and the disease has entered South Ubangi as the seventh affected province.
Background & Context
The outbreak was declared in mid-May 2026 and quickly became the largest in DRC history and the fastest-spreading Ebola event recorded anywhere. It is driven by the Bundibugyo strain, for which existing treatments and vaccines remain untested and costly. Persistent insecurity, hard-to-reach terrain, health-infrastructure gaps, and cultural burial practices have compounded response efforts. Seasonal factors such as the restart of the school year this month add further transmission risk.
Data & Statistics
- Confirmed cases: more than 7,200 (World Health Organization figures) and 7,475 according to DRC official data.
- Deaths: over 3,500 (WHO) and 3,605 (DRC official data).
- Provinces affected: Ituri (original epicenter), North Kivu (nearly half of new confirmed cases), South Ubangi (new seventh province), plus ongoing activity in South Kivu, Tshopo and others.
- Test-positivity rates are rising sharply in North Kivu.
- MSF staff in the DRC number around 1,700 (mostly Congolese) according to MSF, while the organization reports more than 2,800 staff deployed across nine treatment centers and isolation units.
- UNHAS delivered 1.2 metric tons of cargo, including PPE and tents, to NiaNia, Ituri.
Official Statements & Responses
MSF’s emergency coordinator in the DRC, Anthony Kergosien, emphasized that assuming control because some treatment centers admit fewer patients would be a mistake and called for a significant increase in operational support from United Nations agencies, including the World Health Organization. The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) dismissed claims that the epidemic had peaked and warned that transmission remains uncontrolled. The World Health Organization declared the outbreak over in neighboring Uganda on August 26, after 20 confirmed cases (15 imported) and two deaths.
Verbatim Quotes
- “The outbreak is not shrinking, it is moving: South Ubangi has become the seventh affected province, while North Kivu now accounts for nearly half of all newly confirmed cases, with test positivity rising sharply in recent days,” — Anthony Kergosien
- “It would be a mistake to assume the outbreak is under control simply because some Ebola treatment centers are receiving fewer patients,” — Anthony Kergosien
- “We are making every effort to detect and attempt to contain new hotspots early, before they turn into major outbreaks,” — Anthony Kergosien
Conflicting Reports & Gaps
- Case and death counts differ between WHO-reported figures ( > 7,200 cases, > 3,500 deaths) and DRC-official data (7,475 cases, 3,605 deaths).
- Staffing levels are reported as roughly 1,700 MSF personnel by the organization itself, yet a separate MSF statement cites more than 2,800 staff deployed.
- Surveillance gaps and limited laboratory capacity are noted as obstacles to accurate detection, suggesting that official numbers may under-represent the true scale of the outbreak.