By Barbara Nwaiwu
Confirmed Ebola cases in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) have risen to 5,514, with 2,642 deaths, as the World Health Organisation (WHO) said on Monday that the outbreak had reached a “defining moment” more than 100 days after it was declared.
The latest official figures, covering data up to Saturday, put the case fatality rate at 47.9%, while 1,200 patients have recovered.
The outbreak, caused by the Bundibugyo ebolavirus, has spread to 57 health zones across Ituri, North Kivu, South Kivu, Haut-Uele, Bas-Uele and Tshopo provinces.
The DRC authorities declared the outbreak in May, while the WHO said the epidemic had become the fastest-growing Ebola outbreak ever recorded in the country, with transmission continuing to outpace control efforts.
“This outbreak has reached a defining moment,” WHO Regional Director for Africa, Mohamed Janabi, said in a statement.
“The choices we make now will determine how quickly we can bring this outbreak under control, protect and save lives.”
Ituri remains the epicentre of the outbreak, accounting for about 85% of confirmed cases and 79% of deaths, according to the WHO.
Deaths occurring outside Ebola treatment centres remain a major concern, with community deaths accounting for around 60% of fatalities recorded in recent weeks.
The WHO said the high proportion of community deaths pointed to persistent difficulties with early detection, referral and access to treatment.
The organisation also said insecurity, recurrent conflict, population displacement, attacks on health facilities, community reluctance and difficult access were continuing to hinder response operations, particularly in eastern DRC.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus called for stronger action within affected communities to contain the outbreak.
“We can bring the Ebola outbreak under control but only through scaled-up action in affected communities,” he said, calling for sustained resources and stronger cooperation among national and local authorities, affected communities and international partners.
Response capacity has expanded since the outbreak began, with the number of laboratories capable of testing for Ebola increasing from one to 19 and their combined capacity reaching more than 3,000 samples a day, according to the WHO.
Treatment capacity has also increased from fewer than 10 beds to more than 1,300.
Clinical trials of potential treatments and evaluations of candidate vaccines are underway, while the WHO said the first emergency-listed molecular diagnostic test for Bundibugyo virus disease had been deployed.
The agency warned that the coming months would be critical for closing remaining gaps and slowing transmission. It also said an end to fighting in affected areas was essential to enable health teams to reach communities.