2026 Ebola Outbreak Response in DRC

Direct Relief has shipped $13.7 million in requested medical aid to health providers in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda and South Sudan responding to the Bundibugyo Ebola outbreak, delivering protective equipment, supportive care supplies and medicines to protect clinicians and keep essential care running.

In Brief

Caused by Bundibugyo virus, one of six Ebola species, for which no vaccine or treatment is licensed; WHO recommends the Zaire-strain vaccine Ervebo only within research studies (WHO, Sept. 1)

---

The deadliest Ebola outbreak recorded in DRC and the second-largest on record, behind only West Africa in 2014–16 (WHO and Africa CDC)

---

202 health workers infected and 47 killed; fatality rate above 60% in children under five, against about 40% in adults (WHO, Sept. 20 and Sept. 23)

---

Direct Relief has shipped 12 shipments of requested medical aid, $13.7 million in value, to seven partners in DRC, Uganda and South Sudan, and awarded a $50,000 preparedness grant (as of Sept. 23)

---

Contributions designated for the 2026 Ebola outbreak response are used only for costs associated with that response.

An Ebola Outbreak Spreading Beyond Its Epicenter

The 2026 outbreak is caused by Bundibugyo virus, a species of Ebola distinct from the more familiar Zaire strain. No vaccine or treatment is licensed for it. WHO recommends Ervebo, a vaccine developed for the Zaire strain, against Bundibugyo only within research studies, and trials of candidate treatments are underway. Care depends on supportive treatment: rehydration, managing complications and treating secondary infections.

The outbreak was declared on May 15, 2026, in Ituri Province and has since spread to six more DRC provinces. Ituri still accounts for most cases, but new infections are now rising fastest in North Kivu, where treatment centers are near capacity. The virus has also reached Haut-Uélé Province on the border with South Sudan. WHO describes the outbreak as uncontrolled and increasingly geographically dispersed.

Health workers carry much of the risk. WHO reports 202 health workers infected and 47 killed through Sept. 20. The affected provinces also face armed conflict, displacement, mining-related movement and heavy cross-border travel, which complicate surveillance, isolation and contact tracing. The Red Cross reported more than 260 attacks on health workers in the six months to late August.

WHO has declared the outbreak a Public Health Emergency of International Concern, and Africa CDC maintained its continental emergency declaration on Sept. 17. A linked outbreak in Uganda was declared over on Aug. 27.

Direct Relief’s Ebola Response

Direct Relief’s response does two things at once: it protects the health workers containing the virus, and it keeps clinics supplied to treat everyone else.

An Ebola outbreak kills people in two ways. In the 2014–15 West Africa outbreak, more than 10,000 people died from malaria, HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis – not Ebola – because clinics shut down, people stopped seeking care out of fear, and health systems buckled under the strain. That toll nearly matched the 11,325 lives Ebola itself claimed.

“An effective Ebola response has to do two things at once: contain the virus, and help the broader health system keep functioning,” said Dr. Jeffrey Samuel, a clinical pharmacist and Direct Relief’s regional director for Africa. “That is why Direct Relief is delivering not only PPE and supportive care medicines for Ebola, but also medicines and supplies that help partners continue primary care, chronic disease care, maternal health services, and other essential healthcare during the outbreak.”

• Medical aid. Twelve shipments as of Sept. 23 carried 198 pallets — 30.9 tons, $13.7 million in value. Each shipment was requested by the receiving partner. The shipments include more than a quarter million N95 respirators, plus eye protection and protective coveralls, donated by 3M.
• Emergency funding. A $50,000 grant to Humanitarian Action for Africa for Ebola preparedness in North and South Kivu.
• Coordination. VillageReach, which receives Direct Relief’s largest shipments, is coordinating distribution with the National Public Health Institute of DRC’s Ministry of Public Health to reach frontline health workers at the last mile. Direct Relief also coordinates with Africa CDC and the International Organization for Migration.

Where the Aid Is Going

Direct Relief’s aid is following the outbreak — from the Ituri epicenter to North and South Kivu, and to border points in South Sudan and Uganda. Partners receiving aid as of Sept. 23:

• VillageReach (Ituri, Haut-Uélé and Tshopo) — 106 pallets across three shipments of N95 respirators, coveralls, anti-infectives, chronic-disease medicines, oral rehydration salts, IV fluids and water purification supplies
• Première Urgence Internationale (Ituri) — 29 pallets of essential medicines, medical supplies and protective equipment
• Jericho Road’s Wellness Clinic Hope Center (Goma, North Kivu) — 24 pallets across two shipments of protective equipment, oral rehydration salts, chronic-disease medicines and antibiotics
• Association des Diabétiques (North Kivu) — 12 pallets across two shipments of insulin with syringes and needles, and oral diabetes medication
• International Organization for Migration (South Sudan, at the DRC border) — 14 pallets across two shipments of anti-infectives, chronic-disease medicines, oral rehydration salts and protective equipment
• Mulago National Referral Hospital (Kampala, Uganda) — 7 pallets of anti-infectives, chronic-disease medicines, oral rehydration salts and protective equipment
• Humanitarian Action for Africa (North and South Kivu) — 6 pallets of protective equipment, essential medicines and oral rehydration salts

What the Aid Includes

With no licensed vaccine or treatment for Bundibugyo virus, the aid follows what care actually requires:

• Protective equipment — biological-rated coveralls, N95 respirators, goggles and eye protection for the health workers most exposed to the virus
• Supportive care — oral rehydration salts, IV fluids and electrolytes for the dehydration and complications most common in Ebola patients
• Anti-infectives and diagnostics — antibiotics for secondary infections, diagnostic tools, needles, syringes and sharps containers
• Chronic-disease medicines — insulin, oral diabetes medication and cardiovascular medicines, because poorly managed chronic conditions worsen outcomes for Ebola patients and clinics must keep treating everyone else
• Field infrastructure and safety — portable tents, water purification devices and safety vests for response teams

Response Based on Experience

Direct Relief’s 2014–15 West Africa Ebola response remains the largest filovirus response in the organization’s history: roughly $40 million in medical aid and 476 tons of supplies and protective equipment, delivered in more than 80 shipments to more than 1,000 hospitals and clinics in Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone.

In eastern DRC, Direct Relief has supported Jericho Road through the 2018 Ebola outbreak — the first Ebola outbreak in an active conflict zone — the 2024 mpox response and a 2025 emergency grant during renewed conflict. That relationship put supplies in Goma within weeks of the 2026 outbreak being declared.