KINSHASA, July 31 — Democratic Republic of Congo's fast-spreading Ebola outbreak is now the world's second-largest on record, as transmission continues to outpace efforts to contain the epidemic.
Its Communications Ministry said in a statement on Friday that the number of cases reported across Congo has risen to 3,532, with 1,556 deaths recorded.
"It is the fastest-spreading Ebola epidemic that we have ever seen. The world needs to pay much more attention," said the United Nations World Food Programme acting head Carl Skau to Reuters.
The continent's top public health agency, the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), reported that less than three months since the outbreak began, the disease has killed five times as many people as previous outbreaks had by the same stage.
It is caused by the rare Bundibugyo strain of the Ebola virus, which has no approved vaccine or treatment.
Health responders are also battling insecurity and attacks on health facilities across eastern Congo, where dozens of armed groups operate, while deep foreign aid cuts have stretched resources.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) said that the latest figures about the outbreak indicate that only West Africa's 2014 to 2016 outbreak was bigger, with 28,616 cases and 11,310 deaths recorded across Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone.
WHO says outbreak may be bigger than reported
Caritas charity head of emergencies Angele Gapio, based in the northeastern city of Bunia, said that awareness campaigns were failing and frontline responders were exhausted and traumatised.
"The disease has now settled in the community. People continue to seek treatment from traditional healers, and the chain of transmission continues," she told Reuters.
Earlier this month, the WHO said that the true scale of the outbreak could be up to four times higher than official figures suggest.
This week, Reuters reported that surveillance efforts are stretched due to vehicle shortages, understaffing, and community mistrust.
More funds needed to contain epidemic
In June, the Africa CDC said it would require US$1.4 billion (RM5.72 billion) to contain the Ebola outbreak, three times its earlier estimate.
Figures presented this week by the Africa CDC and the WHO showed that Congo's May-August response plan had secured US$213.9 million (RM874.1 million) in declared funding, short of the planned US$242.4 million (RM990.5 million).
A United States (US) travel ban is also restricting the supply of aid workers. Earlier this month, the Trump administration said that it was blocking American citizens in Congo from travelling to the US on commercial flights.
Samaritan's Purse, which operates treatment centres and relies on US responders for its mission in Congo, said it will have to scale back because of the quarantine order.
