Friday, 22 May 2026, 10:03 am
Press Release: World Vision
World Vision warns that children in the Democratic
Republic of the Congo are at grave risk as a new strain of
Ebola sweeps the nation.
Last week the government of
the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) declared a new
Ebola outbreak, with the number of suspected cases rising
quickly into the hundreds.
The outbreak is centered in
the Ituri Province which is home to nearly one million
internally displaced people, many of them living in
overcrowded sites where water is scarce and healthcare is
limited.
The National Director for World Vision in the
DRC Philippe Guiton says the new outbreak marks a dangerous
turning point because there is no known vaccine for the
current Bundibugyo (BVD) strain
.
“This new outbreak comes amid an
already fragile humanitarian situation in the DRC and
children are among the groups most exposed to this health
threat.
“World Vision is taking measures to limit the
spread of this outbreak and save lives, particularly through
hygiene promotion, strengthening infection prevention and
control, and supporting families in displacement sites where
the risk of transmission is highest,” he says.
World
Vision has a long history of responding to Ebola outbreaks,
not only in DRC, but also in Uganda, Sierra Leone, and West
Africa. In these cases, World Vision trained faith leaders
and motorbike riders to deliver life-saving health messages
and address misinformation in remote
communities.
Guiton says the organisation has learned
lessons from the 2018-2019 outbreak in Eastern DRC when fear
and misinformation spread rapidly.
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“In previous
outbreaks, families hid symptoms, but with the right
approach we saw communities overcome fear, rebuild trust,
and protect their children. We know what is possible, but we
need more support to take action.
“A new Ebola variant
with no available vaccine is a threat we cannot afford to
ignore. The lives of thousands of children depend on what we
do next,” he says.
World Vision DRC’s East Zone
Director, David Munkley, says time is of the essence and
it’s vital the international community band together to
support the response in the DRC.
“Actue malnutrition
is already rife in Ituri region which further weakens
people’s immune systems and this combined with extremely
limited access to healthcare in remote areas means children
and families are at great risk. A rapid and coordinated
response will help save lives and reach the greatest number
of affected people,” he says.
Munkley says World
Vision is calling for urgent international support to fund
health workers, community mobilisation, and protective
equipment in Ituri province.
New Zealanders wanting to
support World Vision’s work in the DRC can give here: www.wvnz.org.nz/CHR
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