Congo is running short of health workers as Ebola remains out of
control, WHO says
[September 24, 2026]
BUNIA, Congo (AP) — Congo is running short of health workers to
staff treatment centers for history's fastest-growing Ebola outbreak,
particularly in the eastern province of North Kivu where cases have
surged 73% over three weeks, the World Health Organization said
Wednesday.
The warning came despite signs of improvement in other provinces,
including Ituri, the outbreak’s epicenter. The outbreak has spread to
seven provinces, with 7,773 confirmed cases and 3,759 deaths, according
to the latest government figures.
Between Aug. 31 and Sept. 20, cases fell 26% in Ituri province and 15%
in Haut-Uele, said Marie Roseline Belizaire, the WHO’s regional
emergency director for Africa. But transmission patterns vary widely and
the outbreak remains uncontrolled, she said.
“While cases and deaths are declining in some provinces, they continue
to rise in others,” Belizaire said. “The outbreak is still not under
control and remains spread across a wide geographic area.”
The outbreak is spreading under extremely difficult conditions, fueled
by insecurity, displacement, a health workers’ strike and intense
population movements. The World Health Organization has said it is on
track to surpass the 2014-2016 West Africa Ebola outbreak, the deadliest
on record, which killed more than 11,000 people, primarily in Guinea,
Liberia and Sierra Leone.
Catherine Smallwood, the WHO’s Ebola incident manager, said cases and
deaths had begun declining in North Kivu after several weeks of
increases. But although treatment beds are being added daily, facilities
still lack enough staff and partners to operate them.
“The human resources gap is one of the biggest gaps,” Smallwood said.
WHO representative in Congo Anne Ancia said one Ebola treatment center
requires about 300 health professionals, including anesthetists,
hygienists, nurses and general practitioners.
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Ebola response teams organize a public demonstration to raise
awareness about the Ebola virus disease in Beni, North Kivu
province, eastern Congo, Tuesday, Sept. 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Sebastien
Kitsa Musayi)
 “We are building Ebola treatment
centers but do not always have the human resources needed to operate
them,” Ancia said. “Those health workers must be paid.”
Frontline workers in Ituri previously went on strike over unpaid
wages, worsening access to care. Health Minister Roger Kamba said in
July that the government was verifying payroll lists after the names
of people not involved in the response were added. Frontline workers
said officials promised to pay the arrears, but some workers
received nothing and others only part of what they were owed.
Another major challenge in the response is the fatality rate among
children, according to the WHO. Children under five have the highest
case fatality rate, more than 60% compared with approximately 40%
among adults, Belizaire said.
WHO Ebola Incident Manager Smallwood said detecting cases among
children under five is also very difficult because the children
can’t necessarily explain their symptoms, and the presentation of
symptoms can be confusing.
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