EASTERN CONGO — The Ebola outbreak in eastern Congo, declared on May 15, 2026, has recorded 3,360 confirmed cases and 1,487 deaths. The outbreak, caused by the Bundibugyo virus, is considered the fastest-growing in history and continues to spread faster than health officials can track.

Ituri province is the epicenter of the outbreak, accounting for nearly 90% of confirmed cases. The World Health Organization states this is the largest Ebola outbreak caused by the Bundibugyo virus to date. Government data released on Friday reported 2,973 confirmed cases and 1,309 deaths.

More than 2.7 million people in the 48 Ebola-affected health zones face acute food insecurity. Six hundred twenty-eight thousand people in the affected zones are in emergency conditions of food insecurity. Over five million Congolese are experiencing emergency-level food insecurity.

The response is hampered by a funding gap, attacks on health centers, ongoing conflict in eastern Congo and mistrust among local communities. Health workers at an Ebola treatment center in eastern Congo went on strike on Saturday demanding pay. Health workers at Bunia General Hospital went on strike last week over unpaid salaries.

Congo’s Prime Minister Judith Suminwa visited Ituri on Friday to assess the outbreak response. Suminwa toured major treatment hubs in Rwampara and Mongbwalu.

Carl Skau is the acting Executive Director of the World Food Program. He described the situation as a “crisis on top of a crisis.”

“Now with Ebola crisis, this is getting worse. Markets are impacted, supply routes are impacted and so people are struggling even more to have enough to eat,” Skau said. “Ebola feeds on delay, fear and hunger.”

He stated that food assistance is frontline Ebola containment. It helps families stay home, supports safe isolation, builds trust with communities and keeps health teams moving. Skau stated, “Stopping this outbreak requires all hands on deck and communities at the centre.”

The World Food Program has delivered more than 160,000 hot meals to patients, contacts and front line workers in 17 treatment and isolation centers. The World Food Program provided dry food rations to 23,000 people in North Kivu, South Kivu and Ituri. Fourteen thousand people under quarantine received monthly food assistance from the World Food Program. Thirty-six thousand people in Ebola-affected zones have been reached with general food assistance.

The UN Humanitarian Air Service has operated 495 flights since the onset of the outbreak. The UN Humanitarian Air Service transported 3,395 humanitarian responders. The UN Humanitarian Air Service delivered 56 metric tonnes of essential cargo to frontline locations.

The World Food Program requires $293.6 million to sustain all operations in DRC for the next six months. He stated, “The World Food Program needs resources (and) donors to step up so that we can do more, to alleviate the pressures on the people here in Ituri.”

He said, “We know what works. What we need now is the speed and resources to scale it before this outbreak outruns the response.”

Measures to slow the spread include border closures and restrictions on movements and large gatherings. The restrictions have disrupted life and businesses, driving up food and fuel prices. The CDC issued an order on May 18, 2026, suspending the introduction of certain persons from countries with the outbreak for 30 days.

Displacement from armed conflict and illegal mining in the region have made it difficult to trace thousands who have come in contact with infected individuals. Patient zero has yet to be identified in the outbreak.

Seventy-six patients remain in isolation or in hospitals. Five hundred forty people have recovered from the virus. There are no approved vaccines or treatments for the Bundibugyo virus.

The World Health Organization states the global risk of the outbreak spreading outside Central Africa is low. Uganda declared itself Ebola-free on July 29, 2026, after discharging its last confirmed patient on June 16.