The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention has officially declared the ongoing Bundibugyo Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda a Public Health Emergency of Continental Security, marking one of the continent’s most serious health alerts in recent years. The declaration follows recommendations from the organisation’s Emergency Consultative Group after growing concerns over the rapid spread of the disease, mounting fatalities, and the heightened risk of regional transmission across Central and East Africa.
According to Africa CDC, approximately 395 suspected Ebola cases and 106 associated deaths had been recorded by May 18, 2026. The majority of infections have been concentrated in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, particularly in the Mongwalu, Rwampara, and Bunia health zones, while Uganda has confirmed two cases and one death in Kampala. Health authorities fear the outbreak could accelerate further because of extensive cross-border movement, insecurity in affected areas, weak infection prevention systems, and the movement of mining communities between neighbouring countries.
The emergency declaration was made after consultations involving senior African Union leadership, including African Union Commission Chairperson Mahmoud Ali Youssouf and South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, who serves as the African Union’s Champion for Pandemic Preparedness, Prevention and Response. Technical experts reviewing the outbreak warned that the interconnected spread between the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda, combined with fragile health systems and population mobility, created conditions for a potentially wider continental crisis.
Africa CDC Director General Dr Jean Kaseya described the outbreak as a direct threat to Africa’s collective health security and called for urgent coordinated action. He stated that the declaration would help accelerate the mobilisation of financial and technical support, strengthen surveillance and laboratory systems, and speed up emergency preparedness measures in neighbouring countries considered at high risk of transmission. Dr Kaseya also stressed that the outbreak was unfolding in one of the continent’s most difficult operational environments, where insecurity and limited medical countermeasures continue to complicate response efforts.
In response to the growing emergency, Africa CDC and the World Health Organization have activated a joint Incident Management Support Team to coordinate the continental response. The mechanism follows the “4 Ones” principle previously used during mpox and cholera outbreaks, focusing on one unified team, one response plan, one budget, and one monitoring framework. Africa CDC has already deployed multidisciplinary specialists in epidemiology, infection prevention, laboratory systems, logistics, and emergency coordination, while internally mobilising US$2 million to support response operations.
Health officials are also increasingly concerned about the limited availability of approved vaccines and therapeutics specifically targeting the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola. Africa CDC said it is working closely with international partners to evaluate available medical countermeasures and expand operational research aimed at improving outbreak response strategies and generating urgently needed scientific evidence.
Professor Salim Abdool Karim, chair of the Emergency Consultative Group, warned that the outbreak’s regional dimensions require immediate and unified continental action. He noted that insecurity, porous borders, and population movement between the affected countries significantly increase the danger of wider spread if containment efforts fail.
Ebola remains one of the world’s deadliest viral diseases, spreading through direct contact with bodily fluids of infected individuals, contaminated materials, or deceased victims carrying the virus. Health experts continue to emphasise that early detection, rapid isolation, contact tracing, community engagement, and safe burial practices remain essential tools for breaking chains of transmission as African authorities race to contain the outbreak before it escalates further across the region.
