The Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo is raging with no end in sight. So far, there are 676 confirmed cases, including 136 confirmed deaths. The true numbers are likely higher. One reason this outbreak is so bad is that it was detected late. According to my guest today, Jeremy Konyndyk, one disease surveillance broke down largely because the United States abruptly cut funding for these programs and related activities in the DRC as part of its shuttering of USAID and steep foreign aid cuts last year.
Jeremy Konyndyk is the president of Refugees International and has deep experience managing Ebola outbreaks, having served as the American point person on the response to the 2014 outbreak in West Africa. We kick off by discussing the trajectory of this outbreak and why U.S. foreign aid cuts likely allowed Ebola to spread undetected, before having a longer conversation about how to get this worsening outbreak under control.
The Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo is shaping up to be one of the major global news stories of 2026. Still, it has not gotten the attention it deserves, in my view, as most media is squarely focused on the Middle East. But pay attention to what is happening in Central Africa right now—because this preventable tragedy is about to balloon and impact people far beyond the region.
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