One man works to slow the fastest-growing Ebola outbreak in history, and
he's doing it unpaid
[August 08, 2026]
By PROSPER HERI NGORORA and MARK BANCHEREAU
BUNIA, Congo (AP) — Wiza Bondele goes to work every day at a hospital in
Congo with one goal in mind: to slow the fastest-growing Ebola outbreak
on record.
At an Ebola treatment hospital in the eastern Ituri province, the
epicenter of Congo's ongoing outbreak, Bondele disinfects contaminated
areas, checks visitors’ temperatures and enforces handwashing protocols
— work that puts him at risk of getting infected.
But like hundreds of other front-line health workers, including burial
teams and drivers, Bondele says he has been working without pay since
the outbreak was declared in mid-May in one of Congo’s most remote and
conflict-hit regions.
Poor welfare for front-line workers has been a key source of concern in
the outbreak. The payment issues and attacks on health teams and
facilities have forced some health workers to walk off the job,
disrupting critical care in the outbreak that authorities say continues
to spread at an alarming rate and faster than efforts to track it.
Ebola spreads through direct contact with the bodily fluids of infected
people or contaminated materials, a risk Bondele is well aware of.
“Sometimes patients are bleeding or vomiting blood. We clean and
disinfect those places,” the 29-year-old infection control worker told
The Associated Press while on duty. “With risks like that, we deserve
salaries.”
Confirmed cases in the outbreak have exceeded 4,000, including over
1,800 deaths, according to the latest government data. It is the
second-largest Ebola outbreak on record, behind the 2014-2016 West
Africa outbreak that recorded more than 28,000 cases, including over
11,000 deaths. Another from 2018-2020 killed at least 2,200.
This outbreak has been linked to the Bundibugyo virus, for which there
are currently no approved vaccines or treatments.
Workers continue despite financial strain
A veteran of Congo’s 2018 Ebola response, Bondele returned when the
virus resurfaced, believing his experience could help protect his
community in Ituri, which accounts for nearly 90% of the Ebola cases.
Instead, he found himself among many workers who have continued
reporting for duty without receiving the monthly salary of $510 that
Bondele said they were promised.
Officials have told them that the outstanding payments will be made, he
said.
During a visit to Ituri last month, Congo’s Health Minister Roger Kamba
said the government is verifying a list of those working to control the
outbreak, as some unrelated names have been added to the payroll.
“We must ensure that these payments reach the right people,” Kamba said.
“We have faced a few challenges, notably changes to the lists, which
have led to complaints from people saying they are not being paid even
though they are working.”
Workers have since registered their numbers to get paid through mobile
money transactions, signed attendance sheets and waited for payment
notifications, but only some were eventually paid, Bondele said.
But even colleagues who were paid have told him they have not received
the full amount, he added.
Congolese authorities did not immediately respond to a request for
comment on Thursday. Officials in the past have blamed logistical issues
for the payment delays.
Without his salary, paying rent, buying food, phone credit, covering
transport costs and paying water bills have all become daily struggles.
He also supports his wife, child and other relatives, responsibilities
he says have become increasingly difficult to meet.
One morning, the hardship became painfully visible.
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Wiza Bondele, a health worker on the prevention and control team,
poses for a photograph in Ituri province, eastern Congo, Wednesday,
Aug 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Dieudonne Dirole)
 Setting off for work on his
motorcycle, Bondele said he ran out of fuel along the way. With no
money to refill the tank, he left the bike with neighbors and walked
the remaining 13 kilometers (8 miles) to the hospital. By the time
he arrived, he said his shoes had fallen apart.
Despite the unpaid wages and hardship, Bondele and hundreds of
workers continue to show up to the hospital seven days a week. He
said his work is too important to abandon.
“I hope their conscience tells them that I deserve to be paid,”
Bondele said, referring to officials.
Strikes and protests have led to disruptions
Bondele was among hundreds of Ebola response workers in Bunia who
staged strikes and protests over unpaid wages in recent weeks, at
times abandoning health facilities and disrupting parts of the
response as the outbreak continued to spread.
“We realized they (the authorities) weren’t doing anything, and
that’s when we went on strike,” he said.
They warned that unpaid wages were undermining morale and affecting
patient care. In a statement, staff at one treatment center said
they would remain on strike until “concrete solutions” were found to
resolve months of unpaid wages and bonuses.
Dr. Adelard Lufungula, operations manager for the government's Ebola
response, said last month that the payment problem was being
resolved, with workers now paid through mobile money instead of cash
and the backlog expected to be cleared soon.
For Bondele, the explanations have done little to ease the
uncertainty.
“I wonder whether it is injustice or whether there simply isn’t
enough money,” he said.
Insecurity and residents’ mistrust complicate the response
The strikes come as the Ebola response is already battling armed
conflict, widespread misinformation and deep public mistrust, all of
which have made it harder for health workers to contain the
outbreak.
“It is very difficult to get people to understand,” Bondele said.
“Sometimes while raising awareness I can be threatened or beaten,
and I have to run away.”
Some communities continue resisting basic prevention measures such
as regular handwashing, he said.
Restrictions on traditional burials, where families are prevented
from touching the highly contagious bodies of loved ones, have
fueled resentment in some communities. Rumors claim that the virus
is a hoax, that health workers are profiting from the outbreak or
that hospitals are withholding lifesaving treatments.
The misinformation has repeatedly turned violent. Angry crowds have
torched Ebola treatment centers, stormed hospitals to retrieve
relatives’ bodies and attacked teams carrying out safe burials.
Health officials say the mistrust has also made contact tracing and
early treatment more difficult, particularly in remote communities
affected by rebel violence.
As visitors line up for temperature checks and disinfectant is
sprayed to keep the virus at bay, Bondele continues the work he says
he joined out of passion.
“Working this job takes a lot of courage,” he said. “But today, I am
discouraged.”
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Banchereau reported from Dakar, Senegal.
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