The Congolese health minister has announced the opening of three treatment centers in the Ituri region of eastern Congo, as the Ebola outbreak continues to spread. Samuel Roger Kamba made the announcement during a visit to Bunia, the capital of Ituri, on Sunday evening.
Health Minister's Statement
"We know that the hospitals are already under stress because of the patients," Kamba said. "But we are preparing to have treatment centers at all three sites in order to be able to expand our capabilities." The move comes as the World Health Organization declared the outbreak a public health emergency of international concern on Sunday.
The outbreak has resulted in more than 300 suspected cases and 88 deaths in Congo, with two additional cases reported in neighboring Uganda. While the epicenter is in Ituri, cases have also been detected in the capital Kinshasa and in Goma, the largest city in eastern Congo.
WHO Response
In a statement on X, the WHO Regional Office for Africa confirmed that a team of 35 experts from the WHO and the Congolese Ministry of Health had arrived in Bunia, along with seven tons of emergency medical supplies and equipment. Ebola is highly contagious, transmitted through bodily fluids such as vomit, blood, or semen, and causes a severe, often fatal disease.
The WHO's emergency declaration is designed to mobilize donor agencies and countries, signaling that the event is serious, poses a risk of international spread, and requires a coordinated global response.
Urgent Need for Vaccines and Treatments
Jean Kaseya, Director-General of the Africa Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, expressed alarm: "Currently I’m on panic mode because people are dying, I don’t have medicines, I don’t have vaccine to support countries. Yesterday I called for a meeting of all partners, we have some candidate vaccine, some candidate medicine, we are pursuing this route. We hope that we can have something in the next coming weeks."
Health authorities have confirmed that the current outbreak, first identified on Friday, is caused by the Bundibugyo virus, a rare Ebola variant with no approved therapeutics or vaccines. Although Congo and Uganda have experienced over 20 Ebola outbreaks, this is only the third time the Bundibugyo virus has been detected.
History of Bundibugyo Virus
The Bundibugyo virus was first identified in Uganda's Bundibugyo district during a 2007–2008 outbreak, which infected 149 people and killed 37. The second occurrence was in 2012 in Isiro, Congo, where 57 cases and 29 deaths were reported.
