There is an Ebola virus vaccine being rolled out in the Democratic Republic of Congo, but will it be effective to curb the new strain of the outbreak?
The DR Congo government recently requested the release of Ervebo vaccines from the global Ebola virus disease vaccine stockpile, managed by the International Coordinating Group on Vaccine Provision (ICG).
The request was for use of the vaccine in the current Bundibugyo virus disease outbreak. Ervebo vaccine is licensed and recommended for use in outbreaks of Ebola virus disease (previously called Zaire ebolavirus).
the International Coordinating Group on Vaccine Provision (ICG) has now informed the DRC government of an immediate initial release of 70,000 doses.
Vaccine doses
The allocation includes 20,000 doses for a Phase 3 clinical trial to understand the impact of the vaccine on the Bundibugyo virus, and 50,000 doses for frontline and health workers in line with the current recommendations of the World Health Organization (WHO) Strategic Advisory Group of Experts on Immunization (SAGE).
It is not known whether Ervebo may be protective against the Bundibugyo virus in humans. Early laboratory and animal data suggest it may provide some protection.
Thus, the clinical trial is expected to provide important new evidence, which is essential for policy-makers to inform future use of the Ervebo vaccine.
It is key that the people offered the vaccine, in the trial and otherwise, receive information of the risks, potential benefits and limitations related to the use of the vaccine in an outbreak of Bundibugyo virus and are able to provide informed consent.
The ICG partners are WHO, the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, Médecins Sans Frontières and UNICEF. Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, provides funding for the stockpile.
The World Health Organization (WHO) and the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) welcome the allocation of vaccines to the DR Congo.
Against the backdrop of the ongoing outbreak, and based on the available evidence, WHO and Africa Centres for Disease Control (CDC) support DR Congo focus on protecting the people of DRC and using a community-led approach, which empowers communities to play a central role in the response.
Africa CDC and the World Health Organization are united in support of the Government of the DRC, to protect affected communities, save lives and bring the Bundibugyo Ebola outbreak to an end, while generating the scientific evidence needed to strengthen Africa’s preparedness for future outbreaks.
It should be noted that the International Coordinating Group (ICG) on Vaccine Provision was established in 1997, following major outbreaks of meningitis in Africa, as a mechanism to manage and coordinate the provision of emergency vaccine supplies and antibiotics to countries during major outbreaks.
The partners and founding institutions are the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, MSF, UNICEF and WHO.
The core mandate of the ICG is to make available and ensure equitable access to licensed vaccines for cholera, meningitis, yellow fever, and Ebola virus disease during outbreaks.
Ebola vaccine stockpile
The ICG has managed the emergency stockpile of Ebola vaccine since January 2021, which was created as an additional tool to control outbreaks of Ebola virus (previously called Zaire ebolavirus).
Since the establishment of ICG Ebola mechanism in 2021 until July 2026, over 56 000 doses of Ervebo vaccine have been allocated to respond to Ebola virus outbreaks in DRC. A further 167 000 doses have been used in preventive campaigns for health and frontline workers in DRC, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Sierra Leone and Uganda.
