Ebola outbreak now ranks second-worst ever

If you’re planning any travel through East or Central Africa in the coming months, this is one story worth watching closely. Congo’s Ebola outbreak has just crossed a grim new mark, and health officials say it’s nowhere near under control.

Congo’s health ministry said on Wednesday that the outbreak has now infected 11,042 people and killed 5,387 of them. That’s nearly half of everyone infected losing their life, which tells you how serious this strain of the virus is. As we reported on 31 October, deaths had already passed 5,000 at that point, and the numbers have kept climbing since.

Why has it spread so fast?

The outbreak was first declared in mid-May. Since then, Congolese authorities have struggled to stop it spreading because of a mix of problems hitting the country at once.

Armed conflict in parts of the country has made it hard for health teams to reach sick people. On top of that, Congo’s health system is under serious strain, roads in many affected areas are poor, and some communities don’t trust health workers or believe the outbreak is real. That mistrust has fuelled misinformation, and in some cases, violence.

Health authorities say renewed fighting in two major hotspots, Ituri and North Kivu provinces, is making things worse. They’re calling for a halt to the violence so health workers can reach patients without being blocked or attacked. Health facilities and medical staff have themselves been targeted by people in communities who don’t trust the response efforts.

How does this compare to past outbreaks?

Ebola was first discovered in 1976, and there have been dozens of outbreaks since then across Africa. The worst one before this was in West Africa between 2014 and 2016, with about 28,000 infections and more than 11,000 deaths.

This current outbreak in Congo is already the second-deadliest ever recorded, and it got there far faster. Experts say it has had at least three times the number of cases and deaths compared with the West Africa outbreak, in the same amount of time since being declared.

The virus causing this outbreak, the Bundibugyo strain, has no known vaccine or treatment. That’s a key difference from some other Ebola strains, where vaccines have helped slow transmission in recent years.

What this means if you’re in Kuwait

There’s no reported case of this outbreak reaching Kuwait or the Gulf, and nothing in the latest health ministry figures suggests that risk. But the virus has already crossed into Uganda, Kenya and Nigeria, so it’s moving beyond Congo’s borders.

If you have family, friends or colleagues in Kenya or Uganda, or you’re travelling there for work or a visit, it’s worth keeping an eye on official health advisories before you go. Kuwait has already seen knock-on effects from outbreak-related travel rules elsewhere in the region. More than 350 Kenyan workers were turned back from Saudi Arabia this month over Ebola-related travel rules, after Saudi Arabia introduced new entry restrictions tied to the outbreak. If similar rules spread to other Gulf states, it could affect workers and travellers connected to Kuwait too.

For now, experts are focused on getting the outbreak itself under control. They’re calling for more international support to help slow the spread inside Congo, where armed conflict keeps undoing containment efforts. You can follow our international news coverage for updates as the situation develops.

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