In a press release published on Thursday 4 September, the Institut national de recherche biomédicale (INRB) confirmed a new Ebola epidemic in Kasai province, reporting 28 suspected cases and 16 deaths in September 2025. The victims include four health workers, giving an alarming case-fatality rate of 57%.

Analyses carried out by INRB have identified the “Zaire” strain, considered to be the most virulent of the Ebola virus. To counter the spread of this disease, said the same source, a rapid intervention team, supported by the World Health Organization (WHO), is already on the ground to step up surveillance and contain the situation.

On the spot, the Administrator of the Mweka territory, François Minga Mbengele, highlighted the appearance of episodes of acute diarrhoea among the Bulape population, a worrying symptom linked to the epidemic.

Of the 6 samples received at the Institut national de recherche-biomédicale (INRB) from the Bulape health zone, 5 tested positives for the Zaire strain of Ebola.

According to the Congolese Minister for Public Health, Hygiene and Social Welfare, who made the announcement at a press briefing on Thursday, 04 September 2025, this is the 16th recorded outbreak of the Ebola virus.

The Minister, Dr Roger Kamba, confirmed that “a total of 28 cases and 15 deaths have been recorded in this health zone. This gives us a case-fatality rate of 53.6%”.  He went on to say: “Ebola is a serious disease that is spread by direct contact with the bodily fluids of a sick or dead person, or by handling an infected dead animal. The danger we face with this disease is the very high mortality rate and direct contamination”.

The Health Minister is advising the public to avoid all contact with the sick, who must be cared for and quarantined. He also stresses the need not to handle dead animals and to maintain strict hygiene.

Dr Samuel Roger Kamba, who describes the situation as “very worrying”, assures us that the central government is doing its utmost to deal with the situation and to monitor the epidemic closely.

Ebola has been present in the DRC for several decades, but the center of the country has not been affected for some time. In Kasai province, the previous outbreaks of Ebola were reported in 2007 and 2008. In the country, there have been 15 epidemics since the disease was first identified in 1976.

Written by Akilimali Chomachoma