WHO Director General Visits the Democratic Republic of Congo as Ebola Outbreak Worsens

The Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO), Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, arrived in the Democratic Republic of the Congo to meet President Felix Tshisekedi, as the Ebola outbreak worsens, the UN-affiliated organization announced on Wednesday.

The Democratic Republic of the Congo declared its 17th Ebola outbreak on May 15. During the weekend, the WHO warned that the epidemic is spreading at an “exceptional” rate, calling for an intensified health response.

The organization stated that the number of confirmed cases has reached 3,874, while the death toll has risen to 1,751 since the outbreak began.

The deadliest outbreak occurred between 2018 and 2020, claiming the lives of approximately 2,300 people out of roughly 3,500 recorded cases.

Ghebreyesus arrived in the capital, Kinshasa, on Tuesday and was scheduled to meet Tshisekedi on Wednesday, according to a WHO spokesperson speaking to Agence France-Presse, without providing further details.

Tedros had visited the country in late May, traveling to the Ituri province in the northeast, where approximately 90 percent of Ebola cases were recorded.

The current outbreak is caused by the Bundibugyo variant of the virus, for which there is currently no vaccine or treatment.

The five affected provinces in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo suffer from a weak state presence and a severe lack of health infrastructure.

Ebola virus is transmitted through close contact with contaminated body fluids, causing hemorrhagic fever, and has killed more than 15,000 people in Africa over the past 50 years.