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WHO Declares Ebola Outbreak in Congo and Uganda a Global Public Health Emergency

The declaration accelerates clinical testing of two monoclonal antibodies plus an oral antiviral to address a rare strain that has no approved vaccine or specific treatment.

Travelers wait to pass a security checkpoint at Dulles International airport in Dulles, Virginia, U.S. November 13, 2025. REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein/File Photo
A sanitation worker from the Bunia city government sprays chlorine to disinfect the central market, as Ituri province continues to combat an Ebola outbreak, in Bunia, Congo, Saturday, May 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Moses Sawasawa)
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A sanitation worker from the Bunia city government sprays chlorine to disinfect the central market, as Ituri province continues to combat an Ebola outbreak, in Bunia, Congo, Saturday, May 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Moses Sawasawa)

Overview

  • The World Health Organization declared the outbreak a Public Health Emergency of International Concern on May 17, prompting Africa CDC to call a continental emergency and mobilise international support.
  • Health authorities report hundreds to nearly a thousand suspected cases and roughly 200 suspected deaths in the Democratic Republic of Congo, with confirmed infections also documented in Uganda and cross‑border movement increasing risk.
  • Laboratories identified the cause as the Bundibugyo ebolavirus, a rarer species for which no licensed vaccines or targeted therapies exist, so WHO has prioritised Regeneron 3479, MBP134 and the oral antiviral obeldesivir for rapid clinical evaluation.
  • Containment work is being undermined by violence, community resistance and supply shortfalls, including attacks on treatment sites that forced suspected patients to flee and left frontline teams short of PPE and treatment space.
  • Countries are tightening border checks and travel guidance, with several governments issuing advisories or screening rules; the near-term priorities are to complete trials, expand contact tracing, and get supplies to front-line workers to protect communities.