The African Development Bank Group has approved grants worth USD 13 million to enhance national emergency responses to the Ebola virus disease (EVD-B) outbreak and strengthen efforts to arrest its spread in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), South Sudan and Uganda.
On 15 May 2026, DRC announced a new outbreak of Ebola virus disease centred in Ituri province, in the east of the country, and also affecting Bunia, Rwampara and Mongwalu.
The funding package comprises a grant of USD 10 million drawing on reallocated resources from the Bank Group's DRC portfolio, and which will be channelled through the World Health Organisation (WHO). A second grant of USD 3 million, sourced from the African Development Bank's Multi-Country Emergency Assistance Project covering DRC, Uganda and South Sudan, will be implemented by the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC). DRC, the epidemic's epicentre, will receive USD 11 million dollars of the funding; Uganda and South Sudan will each receive $1 million from the same project.
Under the Bank Group's Ebola Virus Disease Outbreak Response Plan, the funds will be deployed to halt the spread of the virus and reduce related mortality and morbidity in the most affected and vulnerable areas, in close coordination with the countries' health ministries. Components of this effort will include strengthening early case diagnosis, epidemiological surveillance, community engagement, public awareness and regional coordination.
"This emergency support reflects the African Development Bank Group's commitment to supporting the Democratic Republic of Congo and countries in the region in protecting human lives, strengthening the resilience of health systems and preventing the spread of the epidemic," said Mohamed Cherif, Deputy Director General for Central Africa and DRC country manager at the African Development Bank Group. "Through this support, the Bank Group reaffirms its commitment to standing by regional member countries in times of crisis," he noted.
Since the Ebola outbreak in May, the disease has also spread to the provinces of North Kivu and South Kivu. This new outbreak is caused by the Bundibugyo strain of the Ebola virus, a particularly virulent variant for which there is, to date, neither an approved vaccine nor a specific treatment.
