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UN PhotoWFP / DRC EBOLA RESPONSE
STORY: WFP / DRC EBOLA RESPONSE
TRT: 2:32
SOURCE: WFP
RESTRICTIONS: PLEASE CREDIT WFP ON SCREEN
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / FRENCH / NATS
DATELINE: May 2026, Democratic Republic of Congo
31 MAY 2026, BUNIA, ITURI, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO
1. Various shots, workers at a health centre in Bunia put on PPE.
30 MAY 2026, BUNIA, ITURI, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO
2. Various shots, WHO Director General being briefed by WFP staff during a visit to Bunia
29 May 2026, BUNIA, ITURI, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO
3. SOUNDBITE (French) Olivier Nkakudulu, WFP Head of Bunia Field Office:
“Food assistance in health facilities is essential. We have patients who are in isolation and without support. They would otherwise leave the health facility, so in addition to the assistance and medical care they receive, they are also provided with food that enables them to stay in the facility and recover more quickly.”
[French Transcription]
« L'assistance alimentaire dans les structures de santé est primordiale. Nous avons des patients qui sont en isolation et sans assistance. Ils sortiraientde cette structure de santé, donc au-delà de l'assistance et des soins médicaux qu'ils reçoivent. iIls reçoivent également une alimentation qui leurpermettent de rester dans cette structure et également de récupérer rapidement. »
31 MAY 2026, BUNIA, ITURI, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO
4. Various shots, preparation of hot meals and nutrition support for Ebola patients and close contacts.
Support for vulnerable and impacted households is critical as fear, stigma, and restrictions disrupt access to markets, healthcare, and livelihoods. High levels of malnutrition are also a concern as malnutrition seriously weakens the body’s defences, leaving vulnerable communities far less able to fight Ebola and increasing the risk of severe illness and death.
30 MAY 2026, GOMA, NORTH KIVU, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO
5. Various shots, preparation of hot meals and nutrition support for Ebola patients and close contacts
WFP is scaling up emergency food and nutrition assistance for over 146,000 people in Ituri Province and communities affected by the Ebola outbreak. This includes patients, people who experienced isolated contact, affected households and other vulnerable groups, so families can comply with health measures without losing access to food. When families do not have enough food, they are more likely to delay treatment, move in search of income, or break isolation measures to survive.
30 MAY 2026, BUNIA, ITURI, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO
6. Various shots, streets of Bunia, the capital of Ituri Province which has been the epicentre of the virus.
2 JUNE 2026, KINSHASA, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO
7. SOUNDBITE (English) David Stevenson, WFP Country Director for Democratic Republic of Congo (English)
“Raging conflict, hunger, malnutrition, food insecurity, and a very tense population – and that’s where Ebola is raging and why it’s so difficult to stop. So WFP’s assistance is crucial to push back hunger so malnutrition does not increase and to end Ebola.”
17 MAY 2026, KINSHASA, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO
8. Various shots, passengers boarding and cargo being loaded from UNHAS flight
At the heart of WFP’s Ebola response is the WFP-operated United Nations Humanitarian Air Service, which is ensuring that even the most remote and high-risk areas remain accessible. Flights into Bunia and beyond are transporting frontline responders, medical teams, and critical supplies, while maintaining vital humanitarian corridors despite restrictions on movement and limited access.
30 MAY 2026, BUNIA, ITURI, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO
9. Various shots, cargo being unloaded from UNHAS flights
A dedicated helicopter is now supporting rotations between Bunia and Mongwalu, the epicentre, moving cargo and personnel daily, with capacity totransport several tons of essential supplies.
The Ebola outbreak comes at a particularly dangerous moment: 26.5 million people across the Democratic Republic of the Cong (DRC) are already facing acute food insecurity, with needs far out pacing the response.
Almost ten million people are already facing crisis or emergency levels of hunger (IPC 3 and above) in the eastern DRC provinces (Ituri, North Kivu, South Kivu and Tanganyika). Even small disruptions can push families deeper into hunger.
Ituri is one of the most severely food insecure hotspots in DRC in 2026, with an estimated 1,7 million people – more than a third of the population -facing crisis or worse levels of hunger (IPC 3+), including over 500,000 people in IPC4.
This is a region facing persistent conflict, displacement, and fragile health systems, with over 1.6 million people displaced in Ituri alone.
In addition to meeting the life-saving needs of food-insecure people in Ituri (IPC3+), WFP is supporting the vital health emergency response.
WFP is providing vital support across three pillars: Support to frontline health workers to safely carry out response efforts. Critical logistics services, including the movement of first responders, medical supplies, and essential cargo. Life-saving food and nutrition assistance to patients, survivors, contacts, and affected households. Facilitating air medevac services for humanitarian staff that may be infected. The response is being scaled up in phases, but needs are high, access is constrained, and resources remain stretched. There is a real risk that not everyone who needs assistance can be reached immediately.
Through the WFP-managed UN Humanitarian Air Service (UNHAS), WFP is enabling access to remote and insecure locations, including in Ituri.
WFP is prioritizing food assistance to the most vulnerable, patients, contact cases, and affected families, based on access and available resources.
WFP stands ready to scale up further, but sustained support is essential to protect vulnerable communities from both disease and hunger.
In eastern DRC, this is not just a fight against a virus; it is also a fight to prevent a health emergency from becoming a hunger catastrophe.
WFP is delivering life-saving assistance across eastern DRC, reaching hundreds of thousands of people through food and cash assistance between January and April , including: Over 1.4 million food-insecure people supported through in-kind and cash transfers. More than 369,649 children under two years old, and pregnant and breastfeeding women and girls with nutrition prevention and treatment assistance. Over 25,540 metric tons of food have been distributed, and more than USD 12 million provided through cash-based or voucher transfers.
Malnutrition seriously weakens the body’s defences, leaving vulnerable communities far less able to fight Ebola and increasing the risk of severe illness and death. For the most vulnerable, fear, stigma, and restrictions disrupt access to markets, healthcare, and livelihoods. The reality is stark: people should not have to choose between protecting themselves from Ebola and finding food.
Food insecurity in eastern DRC did not start with Ebola. It was already at critical levels due to conflict and displacement and now risks worsening still with Ebola.
