UN sends emergency funds and staff to tackle Congo Ebola crisis
A healthcare worker at the Bunia General Referral Hospital following a resurgence of Ebola involving the Bundibugyo strain, a rarer variant of the virus with no approved vaccine currently available, in Bunia, Ituri province of the Democratic Republic of Congo May 21, 2026. PHOTO | REUTERS
Geneva. The United Nations is releasing around $60 million from an emergency fund to help contain an Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo and deploying more staff, its aid chief said on Friday.
"We need to get ahead of this Ebola outbreak," said Tom Fletcher on X. "These are tough operating environments for lifesaving work. We face conflict and high population movement."
Experts believe the of the virus - for which there is no vaccine - circulated undetected for around two months in Congo's Ituri province before being identified last week.
