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The Democratic Republic of Congo has recorded more than 3,500 Ebola cases in its latest outbreak, surpassing the number recorded during the country’s deadliest outbreak between 2018 and 2020, official figures showed on Friday.
The latest outbreak is spreading in eastern DR Congo, a region affected by more than three decades of conflict.
Congolese health officials said 3,532 cases had been confirmed across five provinces, with 1,556 deaths recorded.
The number of confirmed cases has risen sharply, from 2,000 on July 15, just two months after the outbreak was declared.
Ebola, which spreads through contact with bodily fluids and causes haemorrhagic fever, has killed more than 15,000 people across Africa over the past 50 years.
The current outbreak is DR Congo’s 17th and is being driven by the Bundibugyo strain, for which there is currently no approved vaccine or treatment.
A vaccine described by the World Health Organisation(WHO) as the “most promising” to fight the current outbreak will be developed by Singapore-based Hilleman Laboratories, it announced on Thursday.
Meanwhile, Oxford University is conducting clinical trials on another Bundibugyo vaccine, with the first volunteer receiving a dose last week.
The outbreak’s epicentre is northeastern Ituri province, which borders South Sudan and Uganda, although its full extent remains difficult to determine.
The virus has also been detected in North Kivu, South Kivu and two other provinces. Large areas of North and South Kivu, including provincial capitals, are controlled by the Rwanda-backed M23 armed group.
Uganda declared itself Ebola-free this week after the recovery of its last locally transmitted case, but the WHO has warned that the country remains at risk because of the outbreak in neighbouring DR Congo.
