BUNIA, Democratic Republic of Congo – The Ebola outbreak in eastern DRC is intensifying food insecurity in a nation already coping with one of the world’s largest humanitarian crises, the head of the United Nations World Food Programme told the Associated Press Wednesday.
During a visit to Ituri province, Carl Skau, acting executive director of the World Food Programme, called the outbreak a “crisis on top of a crisis,” noting that it has worsened an already dire situation where more than five million DRC citizens face emergency‑level food insecurity.
A protracted conflict in eastern DRC has pushed nearly ten million people into crisis or emergency hunger levels, with Ituri province—the outbreak’s epicenter—bearing the brunt, home to 1.9 million of those affected, the WFP said.
Across roughly 48 Ebola‑affected health zones, over 2.7 million people confront acute food insecurity, of whom 628,000 are in emergency conditions, the agency added.
“Now with the Ebola crisis, the situation is deteriorating. Markets and supply routes are disrupted, leaving people struggling even more to obtain enough food,” Skau told the AP.
The outbreak, deemed the fastest‑spreading in history, has tallied 3,360 confirmed cases and 1,487 deaths since it was declared on May 15.
Control measures such as border closures, movement restrictions, and bans on large gatherings have disrupted daily life and commerce, driving up food and fuel prices, the WFP said.
The UN food agency has delivered over 160,000 hot meals to patients, contacts, and frontline workers at 17 treatment and isolation centers to date.
In Mongbwalu, a mining town and another outbreak hotspot, residents report that Ebola and the accompanying measures have made feeding families increasingly difficult.
Kahambu Deborah, a 40‑year‑old mother of six, said rebel violence has limited her access to farmland, and Ebola‑related restrictions have compounded the hardship.
“Accessing food has become one of our most severe challenges lately. Insecurity sometimes prevents us from reaching our fields, and our children suffer as a result,” she said.
Dr. Richard Lokudu, director‑general of Mongbwalu General Hospital, reported a rise in malnutrition cases across the region, including within the Ebola treatment center, compared with pre‑outbreak levels.
In Mongbwalu, the UN agency’s food assistance program has helped curb movement of people searching for survival means, said Tourne Kasereka, a WFP monitoring assistant.
The outbreak is especially hard to control because the causative Bundibugyo virus lacks approved vaccines or treatments, unlike most previous Congolese outbreaks.
Officials warn that the virus continues to outpace tracking efforts despite an expanding response.
A vital part of the response, Skau stressed, is delivering food to those who need it.
“The World Food Programme needs additional resources and donor support to expand its efforts and ease the pressure on people in Ituri,” he added.
