The Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo is accelerating its spread beyond Ituri, the province where it began in early 2026. Over the past week, confirmed cases in North Kivu and Haut-Uele provinces roughly doubled, while Tshopo province experienced an even larger surge from a smaller initial base. On August 18, the total number of confirmed infections increased by 103, reaching 5,208. The outbreak has also expanded into a new area within Bas-Uele province, bringing the national total of affected health districts to 56, according to the Congolese Ministry for Communications and Media on August 19. The cumulative death toll stands at 2,476, resulting in a case-fatality rate of 47.5 percent.
The faster growth of cases outside Ituri is severely straining the response systems, which have already been struggling for weeks. In July, North Kivu's Ebola treatment facilities were operating above capacity, and authorities reported shortages of ambulances, infection-control supplies, and adequately equipped treatment centers. Currently, North Kivu still lacks enough beds for suspected Ebola patients, and only one of seven operational treatment centers in neighboring Haut-Uele meets required standards. Wamba, for example, had four times the number of confirmed patients compared to available beds, and Isiro, the provincial capital, had more than twice as many.
Challenges in tracing contacts and surveillance are also evident. On August 17, health workers managed to reach only 64.3 percent of identified contacts in Haut-Uele, a significant drop compared to Ituri's 93 percent, while Bas-Uele reached less than 20 percent. The government has identified weaknesses in surveillance, infection control, safe burials, and logistics as major impediments to halting transmission. In response, Congo is enhancing its efforts through the use of Merck & Co's Ervebo vaccine. Authorities in Tshopo currently have 2,000 doses available and have requested an additional 500,000 doses to combat the escalating outbreak.
