100 days of Ebola and the race to stop the spread

A hundred days after the Bundibugyo Ebola outbreak was declared, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is facing an epidemic of an unprecedented scale and efforts must grow to contain the spread in the eastern region and across borders, UN agencies warned on Monday. WHO is calling to scale up the response in the face of ongoing situation, compounded by ongoing clashes among armed groups in eastern DRC, conflict-related displacement and growing hunger. “We can bring the Ebola outbreak under control, but only through scaled-up action in affected communities,” said WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. He also underlined the importance of a response led by national and local authorities, equipped with the necessary resources and supported by resolute partners. In 100 days, the response has grown considerably in scale and capacity, with a testing network expanded from a single site to 19 laboratories now capable of analysing more than 3,000 samples daily. WHO regional director for emergency response in Africa Dr.

Scoop News DeskEbola · Published Monday, August 24, 2026 at 12:00 PM UTCUpdated Tuesday, August 25, 2026 at 10:24 AM UTC

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This figure highlights the ongoing difficulties in detecting cases early, referring patients swiftly to healthcare facilities and ensuring they have access to treatment, according to WHO, which stressed that interventions must be more tailored to local transmission dynamics and operational gaps, missions in active transmission hotspots must be scaled up and high-risk areas need to be well prepared before cases emerge. As the deadliest Ebola outbreak in DR Congo’s history continued spreading on Friday, UN responders renewed their urgent appeal for immediate international support, with existing funding for lifesaving work critically low. Mohamed Janabi issued a stark warning. “Decisions we take today will determine how quickly we can bring this outbreak under control and save lives,” he said.

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