Africa CDC warns 10 countries at risk of Ebola outbreak

Ebola risk widens across central Africa

The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention on Saturday identified 10 nations facing elevated risk of Ebola virus disease following an outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo, with agency Director General Jean Kaseya stressing the need for cross-border vigilance during a virtual briefing on continental health security.

Jean Kaseya said during the briefing that Rwanda, Kenya, Tanzania, Angola, Burundi, the Central African Republic, the Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, South Sudan and Zambia face elevated transmission risk, noting that all except Ethiopia share borders with either the DR Congo or Uganda — both of which have recorded confirmed infections.

International funding appeal launched

The Africa CDC and the World Health Organization have jointly appealed for over $314 million to finance emergency response operations, with the bulk designated for treatment and surveillance in Congo and Uganda while the 10 high-risk nations would share $54 million in preventive funding.

Planned interventions include establishing national incident management systems, accelerating research on vaccines targeting the Bundibugyo strain, deploying additional response teams, and pre-positioning emergency medical stocks before transmission accelerates, according to agency officials.

Outbreak spreads through Great Lakes region

The DR Congo has recorded approximately 750 suspected cases and 177 suspected deaths since declaring an outbreak on May 15 in Ituri province, with the virus spreading to North Kivu and South Kivu and causing 82 confirmed infections and seven confirmed fatalities.

Uganda's Health Ministry said Saturday that three new cases had been confirmed, bringing the national total to five infections as the virus crosses the shared border, prompting authorities in Kampala to activate enhanced surveillance protocols at frontier crossings.

Authorities impose strict containment protocols

Congolese authorities suspended social activities including sporting events in Ituri, the epicenter, while military governor Gen. Johnny Luboya banned gatherings exceeding 50 people throughout the Bunia, Rwampara, Mungwalu and Nyakunde health zones affected by the surge.

The WHO has elevated its alert level to "very high" as neighboring countries intensify preventive screening and impose travel restrictions on arrivals from the DR Congo to block further regional transmission of the deadly virus.