Ebola epidemic in the DRC: more than 4,000 deaths and difficulties of access due to armed conflicts

A worrying figure. The Ebola epidemic has caused more than 4,000 deaths, out of more than 8,000 confirmed cases, in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), according to reports announced Friday October 2. The DRC is in the grip of the 17th Ebola disease epidemic in its history, which in just a few months has become the deadliest ever known in the vast Central African country.

To date, 8,300 cases, including 4,018 deaths and 2,162 recoveries have been recorded since the start of the epidemic, for a fatality rate of 48.4%, according to the latest data from the Congolese authorities. Six cases of Ebola, including four deaths, were also recorded in the province of North Kivu (north-east) in areas under the control of the anti-government group M23, this group supported by Kigali announced in a press release published Friday.

Local wars complicate the situation

Starting from Ituri (north-east), the current outbreak has since spread to seven provinces in the north and east of this vast central African country. The response lacks resources and comes up against the presence of armed groups and the mistrust of part of the local populations in some of these provinces, among the most troubled in the country. In recent days, “violent armed clashes” have hampered response operations in Ituri, in areas affected by a community conflict between local militias, and more than 5,000 people have been displaced, the UN said on Thursday. A transit center for Ebola patients also burned Tuesday evening in the same province, after soldiers entered a displaced site and caused its occupants to flee, according to the UN.

Jean-Noël Barrot on site

The head of French diplomacy Jean-Noël Barrot arrived Friday in Bunia, capital of the province of Ituri (north-east), the epicenter of the epidemic, to mark France's support for local authorities and humanitarian workers participating in the response. The minister landed in the Democratic Republic of Congo on Friday evening. Tomorrow he will be in Bunia, the epicenter of the Ebola epidemic, to meet NGOs and researchers, partly French, who are working to combat this epidemic.

Nothing has filtered out on new humanitarian aid while France devoted 13.4 million euros between January and July to the fight against Ebola. The United States has announced that it will release an additional $267 million to fight Ebola in the DRC.