Health & Public Health
DR Congo Ebola vaccine trial starts in outbreak zone
Health workers in Ebola-hit areas of the Democratic Republic of Congo began a test vaccination programme Saturday to see whether Ervebo, a vaccine developed for the Zaire strain of Ebola, can protect against the Bundibugyo strain driving the current outbreak.
The operation, backed by the World Health Organization and Doctors Without Borders, also known as MSF, is due to give Ervebo to 20,000 frontline health workers in Ituri and North Kivu provinces in a study lasting up to a year. AFP journalists saw health workers receiving vaccinations in Bunia, Ituri's main city.
Congolese authorities say the outbreak has killed 3,639 people among 7,541 confirmed cases, a fatality rate of 48.3 percent. The Bundibugyo strain has no approved vaccine or treatment.
“We don't know to what degree it might be effective against the Bundibugyo strain,” said Steve Ahuka, a Congolese official on the health task force against the outbreak. Nana Mimbu, an MSF research coordinator, said the vaccine “might offer a certain level of cross-protection”.
WHO experts have said early data on Ervebo, including from animal trials, suggested it could offer some protection in the current outbreak. The UN health agency said last month that 70,000 doses of the vaccine, developed by Merck and produced in Germany, were to be sent to DR Congo.
WHO officials have cited “encouraging signs” that transmission may be slowing, but MSF warned Friday that there was no clear evidence the epidemic was coming under control. MSF had also warned that the outbreak was spreading to new parts of the country, including South-Ubangi, and that North Kivu accounted for nearly half of new recorded Ebola cases.
Update
Health workers launched a test vaccination programme in Ebola-hit parts of DR Congo on Saturday.
The WHO- and MSF-backed study will give Ervebo to 20,000 frontline health workers in Ituri and North Kivu provinces.
Congolese authorities now report 3,639 deaths among 7,541 confirmed cases, a 48.3 percent fatality rate.
The study will test whether a vaccine developed for the Zaire strain offers protection against the Bundibugyo strain.
Source note: AFP news report published on 19 September 2026 at 15:42:12 UTC.
Update
Doctors Without Borders warned that the Ebola outbreak is not winding down and is spreading to new parts of DR Congo.
MSF said the virus recently reached South-Ubangi province and that North Kivu accounts for nearly half of new recorded cases.
MSF said many health structures in affected areas are not prepared and need more staff and resources.
WHO figures cited in the item put the toll at more than 3,600 deaths from 7,200 recorded infections.
Source note: AFP news report published on 18 September 2026 at 15:31:48 UTC.
Uncertainty notes
The effectiveness of Ervebo against the Bundibugyo strain is unknown and is the subject of the study.
WHO officials have cited signs that transmission may be slowing, while MSF says there is no clear evidence the epidemic is coming under control.
Source
AFP news report published on .