DR Congo: Ebola spreads to eighth DRC province as hunger complicates outbreak response

KINSHASA, Democratic Republic of the Congo – As Ebola spreads to an eighth province in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), affected families face growing difficulty accessing food while following treatment and isolation guidance. In a response already challenged by conflict, hunger and access constraints, the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) is delivering food assistance, building Ebola Treatment Centres and providing the logistics, telecommunications and air services that enable health partners to reach affected communities. Families should not have to choose between following health guidance and finding food. WFP’s food and nutrition assistance supports patients and families during treatment or isolation, reduces the pressure to move in search of food and helps frontline health teams keep working. WFP’s common services move responders and essential supplies to areas where insecurity and poor roads constrain access. WFP requires USD 214 million over the next six months to support the most vulnerable in eastern DRC impacted by conflict and the Ebola outbreak. Timely, flexible funding is needed to sustain food assistance, flights, cargo movements and treatment infrastructure as the outbreak reaches communities with limited services and deep humanitarian needs. Here are the latest updates on WFP’s Ebola response operations and food security in DRC: Context and food security situation • Across Ebola-affected areas, nearly 3.5 million people face Crisis-level hunger or worse (IPC Phase 3 or above). Among those directly affected by the outbreak, 97 percent still require food assistance. • Ebola disrupts markets, livelihoods and movement, making food harder to obtain while households follow treatment and isolation guidance. • Conflict and displacement have left families with little capacity to absorb this additional shock. • Food assistance meets immediate needs without families leaving treatment or isolation to find food. • Reliable assistance and sustained community engagement build trust amid misinformation, insecurity and mistrust. Funding gaps threaten these efforts. WFP operations and response • WFP has delivered more than 744,000 hot meals in 59 treatment and isolation facilities, and over 3,000 metric tons of food distributed to patients’ families, supporting patients and households through treatment, isolation and recovery. • WFP’s six-month plan includes dry rations for over half a million relatives of patients and suspected cases, maintaining food access during treatment or isolation. • The WFP-led Logistics and Telecommunications Cluster has established two logistics bases, a Forward Logistics Base in Isiro and nine mini bases across Ituri and Haut-Uélé – supporting storage, cargo handling and last-mile delivery for the wider response. • The WFP-managed United Nations Humanitarian Air Service (UNHAS) has flown 1,255 flights, carrying 10,272 responders and 483 metric tons of cargo since the response began. • Following newly suspected cases, reconnaissance flights are being arranged to assess access to Bole-Bole (Haut-Uélé), Yakoma (North Ubangi) and Biakato (Ituri). • The Logistics and Telecommunications Cluster has supported storage of 3,417 metric tons of humanitarian supplies for 43 partner organizations. • The Cluster has facilitated delivery of 2,653 metric tons of critical relief items by air and road, including medicines and personal protective equipment. • WFP delivered Musienene’s first Ebola Treatment Centre (ETC) in under two months from request to operational handover, despite insecurity, access constraints and heavy rains. • WFP engineers continue to design and build treatment centres for Government, WHO and medical partners. Construction for another ETC is underway in Bunia. • Four further ETCs, including one in Goma, are envisaged but not yet operational. Resourcing and operational challenges • Ebola’s spread increases pressure on treatment capacity and the need for reliable transport, supplies and treatment infrastructure. • Insecurity, poor roads and limited local capacity delay access and deliveries. Adverse weather has disrupted UNHAS operations, particularly around Mahagi, Bunia and Isiro. • WFP needs USD 214 million for its six-month emergency response in eastern DRC for life-saving food, logistics, and UNHAS operations. • This includes USD 78.6 million for hot meals and dry rations for people directly affected by Ebola and their families. • Funding also covers critical logistics and telecommunications services, UNHAS air operations and Ebola Treatment Centre construction. • Without timely, flexible funding, food assistance, responder and cargo transport, and treatment-infrastructure support risk interruption. • Keeping these operations running supports affected families and enables health partners to contain the outbreak. # # # Note to editors: Shotlist, video, and info can be downloaded here Photo package can be downloaded here The United Nations World Food Programme is the world’s largest humanitarian organization saving lives in emergencies and using food assistance to build a pathway to peace, stability and prosperity for people recovering from conflict, disasters and the impact of weather extremes. Follow us on X, formerly Twitter, via @wfp, @wfpdrc Democratic Republic of the Congo Health emergencies Hunger Logistics and delivery networks For more information please contact (email address: firstname.lastname@wfp.org): Myrline Sanogo, WFP/Kinshasa, Mob. + 243 999 910 727 Azfar Deen, WFP/Nairobi, Mob. +39 345 846 6425Julian Miglierini, WFP/ Rome, Mob. +39 348 2316793 Martin Rentsch, WFP/Berlin, Mob +49 160 99 26 17 30 Rene McGuffin, WFP/ Washington Mob. +1 771 245 4268