Medical charity Doctors Without Borders (MSF) has warned that efforts to contain the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) are still ongoing, saying the disease continues to spread despite signs of reduced transmission in some areas.
MSF made the remarks on Friday after the DRC government and the World Health Organisation (WHO) reported earlier in the week that transmission appeared to be slowing in some locations. The reports had led to more positive coverage about the progress being made in controlling the outbreak.
However, MSF cautioned against assuming that the outbreak was coming to an end. The organisation said the number of newly recorded cases had not declined nationally, even though transmission had slowed in Ituri province, where the outbreak was initially concentrated.
MSF has about 1,700 staff working in DRC, most of them Congolese. Its emergency coordinator in the country, Anthony Kergosien, said it would be a mistake to conclude that the outbreak was under control simply because some Ebola treatment centres were receiving fewer patients.
"The outbreak is not shrinking; it is moving, " Kergosien said
He noted that South Ubangi province had become the seventh affected province, while North Kivu was responsible for almost half of the newly confirmed cases. He also said test positivity had increased sharply in recent days.
Kergosien further warned that undetected chains of transmission had already developed in some of the worst-affected areas. He said the spread into areas with weaker preparedness and response systems could create a serious risk.
The outbreak was officially declared in mid-May, although MSF said it likely began spreading several months earlier. It has become the largest Ebola outbreak in DRC's national history and the fastest-spreading outbreak recorded anywhere
Why did Ebola spread so rapidly during the DRC's worst outbreak?
The 2026 Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is spreading faster than any previous epidemic. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), the virus has already infected more than 7,200 people and claimed over 3,500 lives since it began in May.
While medical data tracking has gotten better over time, it confirms that this is the worst outbreak in the country's history and the second largest ever recorded globally. To put its rapid growth into perspective, the massive 2013-2016 West African outbreak took two and a half years to reach tens of thousands of infections, whereas this current crisis exploded past 7,000 cases in just four months.
The outbreak is facing severe hurdles, as most infections are concentrated in remote northern and eastern regions heavily impacted by armed conflict and weak healthcare networks.
Containing the virus is further complicated by striking medical staff shortages and deeply rooted, intimate burial traditions that risk spreading the infection after death.
Compounding these challenges is the presence of the rare Bundibugyo ebolavirus strain; standard vaccines and treatments remain largely untested against it, and their high costs make them practically inaccessible for the local population.
Category: Health
Related Video: Dolly Parton’s Family Announces Her Passing in Emotional Tribute
Facebook
Twitter / X
WhatsApp
LinkedIn
Telegram
Reddit