Ebola outbreak in DR Congo could become worst in history, Africa CDC warns | Ebola News
Ebola Outbreak in Democratic Republic of Congo Raises Alarm as Cases Increase
16 Jun 2026
The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is currently facing a significant Ebola outbreak, with confirmed cases rising to 837, including 196 fatalities, according to government data released on Tuesday.
Jean Kaseya, Director-General of the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), has raised concerns that this eruption could surpass the worst Ebola outbreak on record, which resulted in over 11,000 deaths. During a virtual meeting of African leaders and international donors on Tuesday, Kaseya stressed the urgency of quick intervention.
“If we don’t stop the outbreak very soon, it will be worse than what we had in West Africa and eastern DRC,” Kaseya stated. He highlighted a significant gap in contact tracing efforts, noting that tens of thousands of individuals potentially exposed to the virus remain untraced. “We are missing more than 26,000 people, and we don’t know where they are, and we don’t know if they are contaminating other people,” he added in an interview with Al Jazeera.
The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies echoed these sentiments, with operations manager Bruno Michon warning that the epidemic has not yet peaked. “We are afraid that this could last one year to end this disease,” Michon said.
Efforts to combat the outbreak have been complicated by a shortage of treatment centers and community resistance to stringent hygiene protocols. More than a month after the outbreak was declared, health officials stated that the full extent of the crisis remains unclear.
Officials emphasize that the bodies of Ebola victims remain highly infectious after death, with unsafe traditional burial practices—often involving family members handling the remains without proper protective gear—being a major transmission factor.
As containment efforts struggle, the continent has raised less than a fifth of the $518 million needed to enhance response measures, according to Burundi’s President Evariste Ndayishimiye, who chairs the African Union. This financial shortfall raises concerns about the potential consequences should the virus remain uncontrolled.
Currently, there is no approved treatment or vaccine available for this strain of Ebola. The World Health Organization has indicated that developing a vaccine could take up to nine months. Meanwhile, neighboring Uganda has reported 19 cases, 14 of which are linked to travelers from the DRC, along with two confirmed deaths.
