The Democratic Republic of Congo has recorded more than 6,000 confirmed cases and nearly 3,000 deaths in what officials say is the country’s worst Ebola epidemic on record, according to the latest figures released by Congolese health authorities on Monday.
The outbreak, declared in mid-May, has now surpassed the 2018–2020 epidemic to become the deadliest in the DRC’s history. It is being driven by the Bundibugyo strain of the virus, for which no approved vaccine or specific treatment currently exists.
The disease has spread rapidly across six provinces in the country’s restive north and east, regions long destabilised by armed groups operating in the mineral-rich territory.
Monday’s update from health authorities put the death toll at 2,911, with 1,366 recoveries recorded out of 6,041 confirmed cases since the epidemic began.
The response effort, already hampered by insufficient funding, has struggled to keep pace with the surge in infections. Years of state absence in parts of the eastern DRC have also left health workers contending with distrust among some affected communities.
Authorities say the Bundibugyo variant frequently presents mild symptoms in its early stages, a factor that has complicated early detection and containment.
