Project HOPE Mobilizes Emergency Response Following WHO Global Health Emergency Declaration for Ebola Outbreak in DRC and Uganda

Project HOPE is rapidly mobilizing a coordinated emergency response with local partners following the World Health Organization’s (WHO) declaration of the Ebola virus outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Uganda as a “public health emergency of international concern”.

The outbreak, officially declared by DRC’s Ministry of Public Health, Hygiene and Social Welfare on May 15, 2026, is driven by the highly lethal Bundibugyo ebolavirus strain. There is currently no preventative vaccine for this specific strain, which health officials estimate carries a 30% to 40% fatality rate.

“We are taking this outbreak with the utmost seriousness as it pertains to the communities impacted, the broader region, and the risk of global transmission,” said Arlan Fuller, Project HOPE’s Director of Emergency Preparedness and Response. “Because the Bundibugyo strain lacks an approved vaccine, containment relies entirely on community engagement, early detection, contact tracing, and robust infection control. High population mobility and underfunded health systems create a volatile environment where delayed tracking allows transmission chains to grow. To stop this virus from expanding across borders, we must act swiftly to provide communities and health workers with the knowledge, equipment, and support to stop this virus from expanding locally, regionally, and internationally.”

Project HOPE is addressing the challenges on the ground by working alongside established local partners in Uganda and DRC to distribute life-saving medical supplies and implement community safeguards:

• Infection Prevention and Control (IPC): Distributing essential Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) including masks, gloves, goggles, face shields, and protective clothing—alongside chlorine for sanitization, sample collection kits, and transport kits.

• Risk Communication and Community Engagement (RCCE): Launching tailored educational programming to equip communities with effective water, sanitation, hygiene (WASH) practices, and building health worker capacity. These initiatives focus on culturally aligned approaches to safely navigate community events, such as funerals, and mitigate the social stigma associated with patient isolation.

Project HOPE is engaged in outbreak response activities across the African continent, previously responding to the 2025 Zaire strain Ebola outbreak in DRC’s Kasai Province, the 2013–2016 West Africa Ebola outbreak, and a successful intervention earlier this year that helped eradicate the Marburg virus in Ethiopia.

Interviews are available upon request — email media@projecthope.org.

>> Situation Report | Ebola Outbreak in DRC and Uganda