Over 16,000 Ervebo Vaccine Doses Arrive in DRC Amid Deadliest Ebola Outbreak

More than 16,000 doses of the Ervebo vaccine landed in the Democratic Republic of Congo late Friday, a crucial shipment as the nation grapples with its most lethal Ebola outbreak to date. The 17th outbreak, declared on May 15, has already claimed thousands of lives and is spreading through northern and eastern regions characterized by limited state presence, scarce health infrastructure, and decades of armed group activity.

The World Health Organization confirmed that the DRC will receive a total of 70,000 Ervebo doses, manufactured in Germany. The vaccine, developed by Merck, is effective against the Zaire strain of Ebola but not the Bundibugyo strain currently prevalent. However, WHO experts are investigating its potential cross-protection capabilities, with early data from animal trials indicating it might offer some defense.

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has already been used several times, and in particular on a very large scale during the 2018-2020 outbreak

Samuel Roger Kamba, the DRC's health minister, spoke at Kinshasa airport as a batch of 16,250 doses arrived. He noted that Ervebo has been deployed effectively in past outbreaks, including the 2018-2020 epidemic. Of the total 70,000 doses allocated to the DRC, 20,000 are earmarked for clinical trials, and 50,000 for frontline and health workers.

According to the latest figures from Congolese authorities, the outbreak has resulted in 2,516 deaths among 5,290 confirmed cases and is "growing exponentially," warned UN senior Ebola coordinator Julien Harneis. WHO vaccine experts have recommended a full-scale human trial of Ervebo to assess its cross-protective potential against the Bundibugyo strain. Meanwhile, two vaccines specifically targeting the Bundibugyo strain are in clinical trial phases, with one developed by Moderna and another by the University of Oxford.

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is growing exponentially