The World Health Organization (WHO) has begun vaccinating frontline health workers and contacts of Ebola patients in response to a new outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s (DRC) Kasai Province.
Health officials confirmed that an initial 400 doses of the Ervebo Ebola vaccine have been delivered to Bulape, the epicentre of the outbreak, from a national stockpile of 2,000 doses. The International Coordinating Group on Vaccine Provision has also approved the release of an additional 45,000 doses to support containment efforts.
The outbreak, declared in early September, is the DRC’s first in three years. According to the Ministry of Health in Kinshasa, there have been 32 suspected cases, including 20 confirmed and 16 deaths. The virus, endemic in the country’s dense tropical forests, has historically posed a recurring public health challenge.
WHO Programme Area Manager Patrick Otim warned of the potential for wider spread after a case was confirmed 70 kilometres from Bulape. He described the risk of cross-border transmission as moderate, particularly to neighbouring Angola.
Otim stressed the urgency of rapid intervention, noting that aid workers remain concerned about declining foreign assistance and weakened international support structures.
The vaccination campaign forms part of a broader emergency response involving surveillance, contact tracing, and public awareness campaigns aimed at halting further transmission.
The DRC has experienced more Ebola outbreaks than any other country since the virus was first identified in 1976.
Melissa Enoch
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