ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia — African leaders and global health agencies warned on Tuesday, May 26, 2026, that delays in financing and coordinating the response to the ongoing Bundibugyo Ebola outbreak in Central Africa could increase the risk of wider regional transmission and rising fatalities.
The warning was issued during a high-level virtual ministerial briefing convened by the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention and the African Union on Tuesday, May 26, 2026, as officials moved to strengthen preparedness measures across the continent.
Health authorities said the outbreak affecting the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda could become the second-largest Ebola epidemic since the 2014 West Africa outbreak, which spread across multiple countries.
Leaders at the meeting endorsed a continental preparedness and response strategy estimated to require at least $319 million between June and November 2026.
The plan is intended to reinforce outbreak containment efforts in affected countries while strengthening preparedness in at least 11 African Union member states considered to be at high risk.
Officials also disclosed that governments, multilateral institutions and humanitarian partners had either committed or pledged nearly $500 million toward the response.
Dr Jean Kaseya, director general of Africa CDC, described the financial commitments as a strong indication of international support.
He said the next phase under the joint Incident Management Support Team would involve validating pledges, determining what portion represented new funding or reallocated resources, and ensuring that financing reached priority areas identified in the continental response plan.
African Governments Increase Commitments
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said African countries had already begun contributing directly to the emergency response.
“African countries themselves have already committed initial domestic contributions representing approximately 10% of the required financing. Africa is no longer waiting passively for others to act,” Ramaphosa said during the meeting.
Ramaphosa, who serves as the African Union Champion for Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness and Response, announced that South Africa had increased its contribution to Africa CDC’s Ebola response to $5 million.
The Gates Foundation also pledged $5 million to Africa CDC and an additional $10 million to the World Health Organization.
African Union Commission Chairperson Mahmoud Ali Youssouf said the outbreak highlighted the need for greater investment in surveillance systems, emergency response infrastructure, genomics, community health workers and pharmaceutical manufacturing across Africa.
“African problems require African leadership and African responsibility,” Youssouf said.
WHO Warns Outbreak Could Worsen
Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, director general of the World Health Organisation, said health authorities were struggling to contain what he described as a rapidly evolving epidemic following delays in identifying cases in eastern Congo.
“We’re facing an extremely serious and difficult outbreak. It will get worse before it gets better. But we know this virus, and we know how to stop it,” Tedros said.
WHO has already released $3.9 million from its Contingency Fund for Emergencies to support response operations.
Officials said insecurity, population displacement and resistance from some communities were obstructing surveillance, contact tracing and access to vulnerable populations. They also cited reported attacks on an Ebola treatment facility in eastern Congo.
Containment efforts have been further complicated by the absence of approved vaccines and therapeutics specifically for the Bundibugyo strain, as well as limited laboratory capacity for rapid confirmation of suspected infections.
Dr Sania Nishtar, chief executive officer of Gavi, said work was underway to accelerate vaccine research and preparedness efforts for the strain while ensuring equitable access to vaccines and treatments once available.
Regional Coordination Intensifies
The Democratic Republic of the Congo’s Minister of Health, Dr Roger Kamba, called for stronger coordination among neighbouring countries and sustained backing for health workers responding to the outbreak.
Kamba said the epidemic was unfolding in a challenging security environment, particularly in eastern Congo, where violence and attacks on health facilities continued to disrupt operations.
Representatives from Somalia, Nigeria, Egypt and Burundi also stressed the need for stronger surveillance systems, laboratory preparedness, information sharing and cross-border coordination amid concerns over regional mobility and the potential spread of the virus.
