Ebola Outbreak Tops 1,000 Cases as Confirmed Cluster Emerges in Kigonze Camp

Overview

• Health teams have collected samples from several recent deaths in the Kigonze camp and some tests have come back positive for Ebola, prompting intensified testing and contact tracing.
• Kigonze has seen an unusual spike in burials this week, including the death of a six‑month‑old, after the camp typically recorded only one to three deaths per month.
• The outbreak remains concentrated in Ituri province with Bunia the local epicenter and the overall case count now above 1,000.
• Response operations are hampered by resistance from some residents to testing and by overcrowded shelters and insufficient latrines that raise transmission risk.
• United Nations data show major cuts to water, sanitation and hygiene funding that forced reductions in WASH programs for displaced people, weakening prevention and raising the urgency of safe burials and community engagement.