OUTBREAK: Ebola
Ebola Outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo - 2025
Disease
We bring together grant information on Ebola.
Research Categories
Charts showing Ebola grants assigned to twelve research categories with respective subcategories.
Clinical Research
Explore how clinical research funding is allocated across various trial phases and diseases to support clinical trial activities.
Geographical Distribution
Charts showing the location of funding organisations and where funding flows to support Ebola research activities.
Annual Trends
Charts for trends in research funding in Ebola and associated research categories.
Background
Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) is a highly infectious, potentially lethal zoonotic disease caused by the Ebola virus (EBOV), also known as the Zaire virus, belonging to the Filoviridae viral family. It was first discovered in 1976 after two almost simultaneous outbreaks occurred in South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), resulting in over 500 cases. Since then, there have been over 20 EVD outbreaks in Africa. The DRC has experienced the most EVD outbreaks. The average case fatality rate (CFR) is 50% (range 25% to 90%), and healthcare workers are especially at risk. The animal reservoir for EBOV is yet to be confirmed. However, fruit bats are believed to be the natural hosts.
EVD is transmitted to humans through close contact with the blood and bodily fluids of infected animals. Human-to-human transmission occurs through direct contact with the blood and bodily fluids of an infected, symptomatic human or objects they may have contaminated. There is also evidence that sexual transmission can occur even after recovery, as the virus is present in the blood. Ebola causes a severe disease with complications, including multiorgan failure, haemorrhage, and shock. There are licensed vaccines (rVSV-ZEBOV and Ad26.ZEBOV/MVA-BN-Filo) and therapeutics (Inmazeb and Ebanga) against EVD.
Current Outbreak
On 4 September 2025, the DRC declared an EVD outbreak in the Kasai Province. The suspected index case was a pregnant woman who developed fever, vomiting, haemorrhage, and multiorgan failure leading to her death on 25 August 2025. By 1 September 2025, the DRC alerted the World Health Organization (WHO) to a suspected EVD outbreak. Laboratory testing on 3 September 2025 confirmed EVD in samples from five suspected cases and one probable death. As of 4 September, there have been 28 suspected cases and 15 deaths (CFR: 54%). Four healthcare workers are among the suspected deaths. All cases so far have come from three areas within the Bulape health zone (Bulape, Bulape Com, and Dikolo) and the Mweka health zone. While these health zones are in rural areas, movement from these areas to more populous cities within the Kasai province is common.
As of 4 September 2025, the WHO has assessed the overall public health risk as high at the national level, moderate at the regional level, and low at the global level. The DRC is responding to multiple health emergencies, limiting its response capacity. The WHO and Africa CDC have stated that they are providing support to the DRC, including technical and financial support. In addition, the DRC has a stockpile of 2,000 doses of vaccines against EVD, which will be deployed to affected health zones for the commencement of vaccination in contacts and frontline healthcare workers.
For more information about Ebola in the DRC, click here.
Key public health and research updates
September 2025:
- Filoviridae CORC meeting held on 5 September to give stakeholders an update on this outbreak (outputs will be linked here when available).
- As of 4 September, there have been 28 suspected cases and 15 deaths (CFR: 54%).
- On 4 September, the DRC declared an EVD outbreak in the Kasai province.
March 2025:
- Filoviridae CORC meeting held on the update of the WHO-AFIRM Roadmap.
October 2024:
- WHO published a CORE protocol for testing therapeutic candidates against Filoviruses
July 2024:
- WHO published ‘Pathogens prioritization: a scientific framework for epidemic and pandemic preparedness’ listing Filoviridae viruses as a high PHEIC (Public Health Emergency of International Concern) risk.
March 2024:
- WHO published a CORE protocol for testing vaccine candidates against Filoviruses
August 2022:
- DRC declared an EVD outbreak in the North Kivu province.
June 2022:
- WHO published a Strategic Agenda for Filovirus Research and Monitoring (2021-2031) (WHO-AFIRM).
January 2019:
- The WHO R&D Blueprint team published a Research and Development Roadmap on Ebola and Marburg.
December 2008:
- DRC declared an EVD outbreak in the Kasai province.
Outbreak-specific research priorities
The WHO R&D Blueprint team published a Roadmap outlining research priorities for Ebola/Marburg in 2019. A more updated WHO-Strategic Agenda for Filovirus Research and Monitoring (WHO-AFIRM)(2021-2031) was published in 2021. This outlines strategic goals and milestones for Filovirus research under three pillars: Anticipation (to prevent and control outbreaks), Reinforcement (to develop and evaluate vaccines), and Cure (to develop post-exposure therapies).
Relevant Links
- A WHO-Strategic Research Agenda for Filovirus. Research and Monitoring (WHO AFIRM). WHO-AFIRM Strategy Roadmap 2021-2031.
- Ebola/Marburg Research and Development (R&D) Roadmap. January 2019 – Advanced draft.
Pandemic PACT data
See below our data visualisations for Ebola research grant funding.
Global annual funding for research on diseases with a pandemic potential
Total number of grants and US dollars committed for each disease
No data available due to applied filters.
Please note: Grants may fall under more than one disease. Funding amounts are included only when they have been published by the funder and are included within the year of the grant award start date.
Global Distribution of Grants by Research Area
The chart shows the total amount of funding allocated for different research areas for all diseases. Use filters on the left for advanced filtering depending on your interests. Use the 'View sub-categories' buttons to explore the sub-categories.
Number of Grants
Known Financial Commitments (USD)
4650
$2.71B
446
$285.02M
2235
$1.34B
3420
$2.54B
1350
$1.02B
No data available due to applied filters.
Please note: Grants may fall under more than one research category, and funding amounts are included only when they have been published by the funder.
Distribution of Clinical Research Grants by Clinical Trial Phase
The chart shows the number of grants awarded and the total funding allocated for clinical research across all diseases, categorized by trial intervention focus. Hover over each stacked bar to see a detailed breakdown by focus. Use the ‘View Categories’ button to explore clinical trial phases in more detail by intervention focus.
Number of grants
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
Known Financial Commitments (USD)
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
Note that some clinical research may fall under multiple categories; although, these overlaps are not explicitly shown. For diagnostic trials, preclinical studies are not included in the data presented.
Global Map of Geographical Distribution of Funding Organisations OR Research Locations
The information on the research location was collected where available from the grant application, and can be different to the location of research institution. Click on a country to see country-specific grant information (including joint-funded grants).
Countries
WHO Regions
No data available due to applied filters.
Please note: Funding amounts are included only when they have been published by the funder. Some research projects are undertaken in multiple locations (countries). Some are funded by multiple funders, the breakdown of joint-funded projects can be found when selecting a country and 'show joint-funded countries'. Where research location is not explicitly specified the default used is the location of the research institution receiving the funds.
Regional Distribution of Funding by Research Areas
Each research category is shown in a different colour
No data available due to applied filters.
Please note: Grants may fall under more than one research category, and funding amounts are included only when they have been published by the funder.
Regional Flow of Research Grants
The chart illustrates the flow of research grants by region, tracing it from funder to research institution and ultimately to the location where the research is conducted.
If the full chart is not visible, please scroll horizontally to view.
Total Number of Grants
US Dollars Committed
No data available due to applied filters.
Please note: Funding amounts are included only when they have been published by the funder. Some research projects are undertaken in multiple locations (countries). Where research location is not explicitly specified the default used is the location of the research institution receiving the funds.
Annual Trends in New Global Grants for Research Areas
The chart shows the total amount of funding allocated to different research areas by calendar year of award start date.
No data available due to applied filters.
Please note: Grants may fall under more than one research category. Funding amounts are included only when they have been published by the funder and are included within the year of the grant award start date.