DR Congo begins Ebola vaccination drive in Kisangani as outbreak spreads in Ituri

The Democratic Republic of the Congo has started vaccinating front-line health workers against Ebola in the city of Kisangani as authorities try to contain an outbreak concentrated in Ituri province. The first injections are being given to health workers and other front-line staff, according to the information provided by officials. The rollout comes as the country faces a strain of the virus for which the vaccine now being used has not been licensed.

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Health Minister Samuel Roger Kamba said more than 50,000 doses of vaccine have been received. He said the campaign will move through provinces around Ituri in a ring toward the centre of the outbreak. The World Health Organization said 70,000 doses of the Ervebo vaccine had been approved for use in the country, with about 20,000 of those doses set aside for a clinical trial to test effectiveness against the latest strain.

The outbreak is linked to the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola, and officials say there is currently no approved vaccine or treatment for that strain. Clinical trials are continuing as health workers call for more doses. The vaccination effort is being prioritised for those most exposed to infection, reflecting the difficulty of controlling transmission in health facilities and communities at the centre of the response.

The figures released by the government underline the scale of the emergency. As of Tuesday, the country had recorded 5,713 confirmed cases of Ebola and 2,744 deaths, according to official figures. The outbreak is described as the deadliest of all past Ebola outbreaks in the country, and it is spreading under difficult conditions linked to insecurity, displacement, a health workers' strike and intense population movements.

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The response also has wider significance because the outbreak is taking place in Ituri province, which borders Uganda, raising concern about cross-border spread. The World Health Organization has said the outbreak remains out of control and is on track to surpass the 2014-2016 West Africa Ebola outbreak, which killed more than 11,000 people in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone. That comparison highlights the pressure on Congolese health authorities as they try to expand vaccination while testing whether the available vaccine can help against the current strain.

What remains unclear is how quickly the vaccination campaign can expand beyond Kisangani and whether the clinical trial will produce a usable option for the Bundibugyo strain. Health workers are still seeking additional doses, and officials have not said when wider protection might be available. The next developments to watch are the pace of distribution, any change in case numbers, and whether the response can keep up with movement across the affected provinces.

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