Death toll from the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo rises to more than 2,000
Originating in the northeastern province of Ituri, the outbreak spread to several provinces in the northeast and east of the country, where the government's presence is weak and health facilities lack resources.
(File) Images of cemeteries in the Democratic Republic of the Congo due to Ebola
The Ebola epidemic, which continues to spread in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), has caused 2,011 deaths among 4,381 confirmed cases, according to the latest figures released by Congolese authorities on Tuesday.
These figures bring the current outbreak, which is spreading in conflict-ridden regions of the east and northeast, closer to that of 2018–2020, the deadliest to date in the DRC, with nearly 2,300 deaths among 3,500 recorded cases.
On May 15, several weeks late, the DRC declared its 17th Ebola outbreak, considered the most significant in its history and likely to "become the largest ever recorded in the world," according to Sania Nishtar, director of the international Gavi Vaccine Alliance.
The outbreak spread to several provinces in the northeast
Originating in the northeastern province of Ituri, the outbreak spread to several provinces in the northeast and east of the country, where the state's presence is weak and health facilities lack resources.
The case fatality rate for the current outbreak is estimated at 45.9% by Congolese health authorities.
Experts from the World Health Organization (WHO) recommended on Friday that the approved Ebola vaccine be evaluated in a clinical trial, given the lack of a specific vaccine against the Bundibugyo variant currently ravaging the DRC.
According to WHO experts, a large amount of data is already available, particularly regarding the safety of the Ervebo vaccine, which makes it possible to consider a phase 3 trial, a stage that is generally conducted on a global scale with thousands of participants.
Doses of Ervebo from the global Ebola vaccine stockpile, created and funded by Gavi, should be available to support the clinical trials, the alliance said in a statement.
This global stockpile, produced by the U.S. pharmaceutical company Merck, contains some 500,000 doses, some of which are kept in the DRC due to the frequency of outbreaks in that country, Gavi noted.
Gavi, founded in 2000, brings together public and private donors to help developing countries acquire vaccines at affordable prices.
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