According to official figures released on Friday, July 31, the country’s 17th Ebola outbreak, declared on May 15, has resulted in 3,532 confirmed cases and 1,556 deaths in just two and a half months, spread across five provinces.
The World Health Organization (WHO) reported that Ituri Province, in northeastern DR Congo near the borders with Uganda and South Sudan, accounts for nearly 90% of all reported cases. Additional infections have been detected in several other provinces, including North and South Kivu.
This outbreak coincides with deteriorating security and humanitarian conditions in the affected regions, where ongoing violence and weakened healthcare infrastructure remain major obstacles to containing the virus’s spread.
The situation is further complicated by the absence of an approved vaccine or treatment for the Bundibugyo strain responsible for the current outbreak, although research into potential vaccines is ongoing.
