DR Congo Ebola emergency: Calls grow for urgent humanitarian access

The latest alert follows reports of security incidents since 20 September linked to an uptick in families fleeing Kigonze displacement camp in Bunia, northeast Ituri province.

According to reports, soldiers entered the site searching for weapons and people suspected of belonging to non-State armed groups. Gunshots were also heard.

8,000 infections and counting

The developments come as the number of confirmed Ebola cases in the DRC has surpassed 8,000 for the first time since the current outbreak began, according to health authority data published on Monday.

The latest situation report records 8,067 confirmed cases and 3,901 deaths, putting the case fatality rate at 48.4 per cent.

Securing humanitarian access to Kigonze camp remains difficult, raising fears that the exodus could complicate efforts to contain the ongoing Ebola outbreak.

According to the UN aid coordination office, OCHA, the camp hosts nearly 19,000 displaced people. Residents have faced “armed violence, threats and intimidation against civilians, arrests, forced displacement and the destruction of shelters”, the Office said.

Echoing those concerns, UN Humanitarian Coordinator in the DRC, Damien Mama, said that many families had left the site to seek refuge with host families.

Aid workers are now struggling to assess needs, distribute essential assistance and maintain protection services.

Mr. Mama also stressed that the civilian character of the site must be preserved and that families “who have already lost everything” must be able to find safety and dignity where they have find refuge.

The dispersal of families also raises serious public health concerns, as Kigonze is among the sites covered by the ongoing Ebola response.

The UN fears that the unplanned departure of thousands of displaced people, combined with restricted access to the site, could hamper disease surveillance, particularly contact tracing, as well as the continuity of essential services and outbreak control operations.

Ituri insecurity

Today across Ituri province, more than 1.1 million people are displaced by conflict and violence, including more than 373,000 living in displacement sites.

Mr. Mama called for the protection of civilians and safe, unimpeded humanitarian access, while reaffirming the humanitarian community’s support for the Congolese authorities.

The security situation is also complicating the Ebola response, according to the latest report from the UN World Health Organization (WHO).

The agency highlighted a backdrop of conflict, insecurity, population displacement and limited access to basic services.

These constraints continue to undermine surveillance, case detection and contact tracing. They also complicate infection prevention and control measures, as well as timely access to appropriate healthcare, limiting the overall effectiveness of the response.

Ituri is the epicentre of the Ebola outbreak and continues to report a gradual decline in cases, compared with the peak observed in mid-August, although transmission remains high.

Infections rise in North Kivu

By contrast in neighbouring North Kivu province, cases of infection have risen substantially, reaching their highest level on record in mid-September, before declining in the most recent reporting days.

The Ebola outbreak is caused by the Bundibugy virus. It has become the largest and deadliest Ebola outbreak in DRC, surpassing the 2018–2020 emergency.

It is second only to the 2014–2016 Ebola epidemic in West Africa, which infected more than 28,600 people and killed over 11,000 in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone.