Towns in Democratic Republic of Congo’s Kasai province have erected checkpoints and limited movement after the health ministry confirmed a new Ebola outbreak, with cases ticking up and aid agencies warning the response is short of money.
The ministry last week declared Congo’s first Ebola outbreak in three years, including 28 suspected infections and 15 deaths, and the first in Kasai since 2008. On Monday, the provincial governor ordered the Bulape health zone — where the earliest case was detected — into confinement, installing multiple checkpoints to stop people moving in and out.
“The worry is that movement from Bulape could spread contamination to other communities,” said François Mingambengele, administrator of Mweka territory that includes Bulape. “Some residents are fleeing into the bush to hide. It’s a crisis, and cases are multiplying.”
Mingambengele said local authorities have registered 51 suspected cases and 18 deaths. A later statement from the health ministry in Kinshasa reported 32 suspected cases, 20 confirmed and 16 deaths.
The World Health Organization said Congo has stocks of therapeutics and 2,000 doses of the Ervebo vaccine ready to deploy to Kasai for ring vaccination of contacts and frontline health workers.
But several aid workers warned that the response could be hamstrung by tighter foreign aid budgets and the rollback of U.S. development programming under President Donald Trump. “Alongside other partners, USAID has established itself as a key pillar. This withdrawal will undoubtedly leave a void that will be difficult to fill,” said one international aid worker in Congo, requesting anonymity. Greg Ramm, Save the Children’s country director, told Reuters that shrinking immediate funds from major donors are already slowing efforts to reach hard-hit communities.