Key points
- WFP has appealed for urgent funding to support the response to the Ebola outbreak in eastern DRC.
- Ebola cases have risen to more than 3,200, making it the fastest-spreading outbreak on record.
- WFP warned that worsening hunger is undermining disease containment efforts.
- More than 2.65 million people in affected areas are facing acute food insecurity.
Main story
The World Food Programme (WFP) has appealed for immediate funding to strengthen humanitarian assistance as the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has surpassed 3,200 cases.
In a statement, WFP Acting Executive Director Carl Skau warned that worsening hunger was hampering efforts to contain the outbreak, which was declared in eastern DRC on May 15.
The agency said it was scaling up food assistance, logistics, telecommunications and air services in eastern DRC, where the outbreak has evolved from a localised health emergency into the fastest-spreading Ebola outbreak on record.
WFP noted that the Bundibugyo strain of the virus is associated with severe bleeding and has a fatality rate of about 40 per cent.
The agency said Ebola had become more than a health emergency, describing it as a threat multiplier for communities already affected by conflict, displacement and food insecurity.
It warned that without urgent and flexible funding, many families could be forced to choose between complying with public health measures and securing food, increasing the risk of further transmission.
“Ebola feeds on delay, fear and hunger.
“Stopping this outbreak requires all hands on deck and communities at the center. Food assistance is frontline Ebola containment.
“It helps families stay home, supports safe isolation, builds trust with communities and keeps health teams moving.
“We know what works; what we need now is the speed and resources to scale it before this outbreak outruns the response,” Skau said.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), this is the largest Ebola outbreak caused by the Bundibugyo virus.
The outbreak has affected 48 health zones across five eastern provinces—Ituri, North Kivu, South Kivu, Tshopo and Haut-Uele.
WFP said Ituri, the epicentre of the outbreak, remains one of the country’s most severe hunger hotspots, with 1.9 million people experiencing crisis levels of food insecurity or worse.
It added that more than 2.65 million people across the affected health zones are facing acute food insecurity, including more than 628,000 people in emergency conditions, according to the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification.
The issues
The outbreak highlights the close link between disease control and food security, with humanitarian agencies warning that hunger could undermine public health measures and accelerate the spread of Ebola without adequate funding.
What’s being said
“Ebola feeds on delay, fear and hunger.
“Stopping this outbreak requires all hands on deck and communities at the center. Food assistance is frontline Ebola containment.” — Carl Skau, Acting Executive Director, World Food Programme.
Bottom line
WFP says containing the Ebola outbreak in eastern DRC will require urgent financial support to ensure vulnerable communities have access to food while complying with public health measures aimed at stopping the spread of the virus.
 has appealed for immediate funding to strengthen humanitarian assistance as the Ebola outbreak ...){kind=link}