US Pledges Support for Ebola Response in DRC, Uganda

Kenya, May 22, 2026 - The United States has announced emergency funding to support the Ebola outbreak response in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Uganda, including plans to establish up to 50 treatment clinics in affected regions.

In a statement released by the US Embassy in Juba, South Sudan, Washington said the rapidly deployed clinics would strengthen frontline containment efforts and provide emergency screening, triage and isolation services in high-risk communities.

“The United States is committing to rapidly supporting the Ebola outbreak response by funding up to 50 treatment clinics, and associated frontline costs being established in Ebola-affected regions of the DRC and Uganda,” the statement said.

The US said the intervention is aimed at accelerating access to life-saving medical care and preventing the spread of the disease through swift containment measures.

“These rapidly deployed clinics will enable implementing partners to establish clinical care and containment perimeters around affected areas,” the embassy said.

The funding will also support the expansion of emergency treatment capacity, field operations and the delivery of protective equipment, diagnostics and essential health services.

According to the statement, previous Ebola outbreaks have shown that rapid scaling up of treatment and containment operations is critical in controlling infections.

“We know from previous outbreak response that ensuring partners rapidly scale up containment and treatment efforts in the affected regions is the most critical variable to ensuring an effective response and that the disease does not spread,” the statement added.

The US government said the announcement was intended to reassure health and humanitarian workers responding to the outbreak that international support was being mobilized urgently.

“Healthcare and humanitarian workers heading to the frontline should know that the United States has their back and is urgently mobilizing all available resources to assist frontline providers and response efforts,” the statement said.

The funding will mainly be channelled through the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) using Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) pooled funding mechanisms.

The US said the partnership with OCHA had previously helped speed up emergency humanitarian disbursements, which would be critical in the early stages of the outbreak response.

“Our combined reforms helped OCHA deliver a record disbursement timeline in our December 2025 funding tranche — proven speed of operations at scale that will be critical in ensuring resources reach the frontline in these critical first days of this outbreak response,” the statement said.

The US Department of State added that it was working closely with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), which is leading the federal response, to coordinate international support efforts.

“The Department of State continues to work closely with the CDC to mobilize our global resources in support of this outbreak response, while putting the protection of Americans and our great American homeland first,” the statement said.