AU High-Level Meeting mobilises US$ 910mln for Ebola response in DRC and Uganda
US$ 80 million committed by African Member States as Africa CDC calls for rapid disbursement and urgent support to frontline responders
BUJUMBURA, June 19, 2026 — African leaders and international partners have pledged US$910 million to strengthen the response to the Ebola Bundibugyo outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo [ DRC ] and Uganda following a high-level emergency meeting convened by the African Union [AU].
The meeting, chaired by Burundi President Évariste Ndayishimiye in his capacity as Chairperson of the AU, brought together African Heads of State and Government, the African Union Commission, Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention [Africa CDC], the World Health Organization [WHO], regional blocs, development partners and donors.
Of the total pledges announced on Tuesday, AU member states committed US$ 80 million, a move welcomed by Africa CDC as a demonstration of continental solidarity and African leadership in health security.
Leaders endorsed urgent action to mobilise and disburse the US$ 518mln required for the Joint Continental Preparedness and Response Plan within the next four weeks.
The plan targets both immediate outbreak control in affected areas and preparedness measures in at-risk countries, including surveillance, contact tracing, laboratory capacity, case management, infection prevention and control, risk communication, community engagement, logistics, medical countermeasures and cross-border coordination.
“Our people will not judge us by our declarations, but by our ability to interrupt transmission, protect health workers, restore community trust and guarantee dignified care for affected families,” President Ndayishimiye said.
The AU Commission Chairperson Mahmoud Ali Youssouf described the outbreak as a reminder that health security remains a shared continental responsibility requiring urgent and coordinated action.
“We must strengthen national and regional response plans, enhance cross-border coordination, and scale up preparedness, surveillance and containment measures to prevent further transmission,” Youssouf said.
Africa CDC Director-General Dr Jean Kaseya said African countries’ US$ 80mln commitment demonstrated growing ownership of the continent’s health security agenda.
“The priority now is speed. Every pledge must translate into financing, supplies, personnel and support reaching affected communities and responders on the ground,” he said.
WHO reaffirmed its support for affected countries and the Africa CDC-led continental response through surveillance, contact tracing, laboratory support, case management, infection prevention and control, risk communication and coordination.
WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said strong regional cooperation would be essential to containing the outbreak.
“Under the leadership of the DRC government and neighbouring nations, and with sustained regional and international support, we can defeat this Ebola outbreak, as we have with previous outbreaks,” he said.
Health officials warned that delays in implementation could sharply increase the cost of the response. Africa CDC projected that funding requirements could rise from US$ 518mln to as much as US$ 1.5 billion if transmission is not quickly contained.
The meeting identified contact tracing as a critical containment measure, with Africa CDC and WHO aiming to support affected and at-risk countries to monitor between 90 and 95 per cent of all contacts throughout the 21-day incubation period.
Officials noted ongoing challenges, including gaps in contact follow-up, shortages of supplies, pressure on health workers, limited treatment and isolation capacity, and restricted access to areas affected by insecurity and population movement.
Participants called for intensified support to the DRC and Uganda to sustain and expand national response measures, including case finding, infection prevention, safe and dignified burials, treatment and community engagement.
Neighbouring and at-risk countries were urged to finalise preparedness plans, strengthen border screening and improve real-time sharing of epidemiological data.
The meeting also called on countries and partners to avoid unnecessary travel and trade restrictions not supported by public health evidence or international health regulations.
Africa CDC welcomed a commitment of more than US$60 million from the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations [CEPI] to accelerate clinical development of vaccine candidates targeting the Bundibugyo strain.
Leaders further urged African Union member states to operationalise the African Pooled Procurement Mechanism and strengthen support for the African Medicines Agency to improve access to medical countermeasures.
To ensure accountability, Africa CDC announced it will establish a weekly tracker to monitor pledges, disbursements, medical countermeasures, technical support, personnel deployment and operational gaps.
The meeting concluded with a call for governments, donors, financial institutions, philanthropies and the private sector to move rapidly from pledges to implementation.
Africa CDC said it remains deployed alongside affected and at-risk countries and will continue issuing regular updates on the epidemiological situation, operational priorities and resource requirements.
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