Ebola Funds Missing, Workers Unpaid – MSF

Hundreds of millions of dollars meant to fight Ebola in the Democratic Republic of Congo are not reaching the people who need them, Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) has warned.

In a new report, the medical charity said that while the outbreak remains “out of control”, frontline workers are going unpaid, lack proper training, and are struggling with shortages of essential supplies. In some cases, ambulances have run out of fuel.

More than 5,400 people have died and over 11,000 have been infected since the outbreak was declared in May, making it the second-deadliest Ebola outbreak ever recorded.

MSF called on the Congolese government and UN agencies to strengthen oversight and accountability to ensure money already released is properly used.

That means “ensuring response personnel are properly trained, paid, equipped, and supported, and directing resources towards areas where needs are greatest,” the charity said.

The warning comes after the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) said last month that $700m out of $962m disbursed to organisations implementing the Ebola response was unaccounted for.

Africa CDC Director-General Jean Kaseya said at the time it was too early to call it embezzlement, describing it instead as a major transparency and financial reporting failure.

Congolese Health Minister Samuel-Roger Kamba also raised concerns, saying aid agencies were required to provide details of their work for oversight, but only 22% had done so.

“Our requirement is clear: transparency must be total. The response relies on a single plan, a single budget, and a single coordination,” Kamba said on X.

MSF said: “Despite the vast amounts of money provided for the response, many frontline responders are left trying to contain the outbreak with empty hands and empty pockets.”

It also flagged surveillance teams that “exist on paper but are nowhere to be seen on the ground.”

“Our teams are often left speechless by the dysfunctions they witness in many areas. Six months into the response, this situation is simply unacceptable,” said MSF President Javid Abdelmoneim.

Contact tracing finding everyone who came into contact with an infected person and isolating them is one of the most important ways to stop Ebola from spreading.

According to MSF, surveillance remains deeply problematic, with two-thirds of deaths occurring in communities rather than treatment centres.

British epidemiologist Neil Ferguson said more than half of cases are going undetected, meaning the outbreak could last another year.

MSF also criticised the “excessive concentration” of efforts in some areas at the expense of others where needs were more urgent.

It said the response was “too slow” in North Kivu province, while Haut-Uélé remained “dramatically overlooked.” In both provinces, MSF observed teams that were inadequately resourced, with health facilities lacking water, chlorine or triage systems.

“This has turned some facilities into new centres of transmission, rather than places of care that contribute to containing the disease,” MSF said.

The epicentre of the outbreak is in eastern DR Congo, a region ravaged by decades of conflict, with some affected areas under rebel control and very few good roads.

On Thursday, the UN and government warned that the areas worst affected by Ebola are also facing a severe food crisis, with almost 10 million people in the region in dire need.

The latest outbreak, caused by the Bundibugyo species of the virus, has spread beyond DR Congo, with cases reported in Kenya, Uganda and Nigeria.

On Wednesday, the last Ebola patient in Kenya was discharged, a major milestone in efforts to contain the disease there.

The Bundibugyo species is relatively rare and has no approved vaccine or treatment, though trials are under way.

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