The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared the latest Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Uganda a “public health emergency of international concern”, as health authorities warn that the current strain has no approved vaccine or specific treatment.

According to WHO, as of May 16, 246 suspected cases and 80 suspected deaths have been reported in DRC’s Ituri province, along with eight laboratory-confirmed infections. Cases have also been confirmed in Kinshasa and Uganda’s capital Kampala.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the outbreak “does not meet the criteria of pandemic emergency”, but stressed the importance of international cooperation to monitor the spread and coordinate response efforts.

DRC Health Minister Samuel-Roger Kamba warned that the current strain “has no vaccine, no specific treatment” and that it “has a very high lethality rate, which can reach 50%”.

Ebola is a rare but severe viral disease caused by viruses belonging to the Orthoebolavirus genus. Of the six identified species, three have been responsible for major outbreaks — the Zaire strain, the Sudan strain, and the Bundibugyo strain. WHO has confirmed that the current outbreak is linked to the Bundibugyo strain.

The disease is zoonotic, meaning it originates in animals and spreads to humans. Health experts believe fruit bats are the natural hosts of the virus. Humans can become infected through direct contact with infected animals or through exposure to the blood and bodily fluids of infected persons.

The deadliest Ebola outbreak occurred in West Africa between 2013 and 2016, when more than 28,000 cases and over 11,000 deaths were recorded across Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone. WHO estimates that Ebola’s average fatality rate is around 50%, though previous outbreaks have ranged between 25% and 90%.

Medical experts say treatment options remain limited. Existing monoclonal antibody therapies and vaccines have only been approved for the Zaire strain, which caused several major outbreaks in the past. The current Bundibugyo strain has no licensed vaccine or antiviral treatment.

Two vaccines — Ervebo, developed by Merck & Co., and Zabdeno-Mvabea, developed by Janssen Pharmaceutica — are currently approved only for protection against the Zaire strain.

Experts have warned that containing the current outbreak may prove difficult due to high mobility between affected regions in eastern DRC and neighbouring countries, as well as ongoing conflicts that complicate healthcare responses.

Symptoms of Ebola can appear between two and 21 days after infection and include fever, fatigue, muscle pain, headache, sore throat, vomiting, diarrhoea, abdominal pain, and impaired kidney and liver function. Diagnosis is often challenging because early symptoms resemble those of diseases such as malaria, typhoid, meningitis, and other viral infections.

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