Dozens of Congolese health workers protested Thursday at the governor’s office in Bunia, the capital of Ituri province, after going months without salaries while treating Ebola patients in one of Congo’s most remote and vulnerable areas.
Who Pays the Price
The people doing the dirty work of containment are the ones getting squeezed. Wiza Bondele, a member of the Ebola infection prevention and control team who also worked during the country’s 2018 outbreak, said his team disinfects homes where Ebola victims have died to reduce the risk of further transmission. He said workers launched a strike in July after authorities failed to address their concerns over unpaid wages and hazardous working conditions.
Bondele said some workers who eventually received payments were given $380 instead of the promised $510, while many others remained unpaid. He said workers were spending seven days a week in heavy personal protective equipment for extended periods, often longer than safety guidelines recommend, and regularly dealing with patients suffering severe symptoms, including vomiting blood, while lacking adequate support and compensation. His greatest concern, he said, was becoming infected and transmitting Ebola to his family and community.
The outbreak has accelerated fast. Congo’s Ministry of Health reported 3,874 confirmed cases and 1,751 deaths, while AP reported 3,973 confirmed cases and 1,801 deaths as of Tuesday. The outbreak, which began in May, has been described as the second-largest Ebola outbreak ever recorded and the fastest-spreading in Congo’s history.
What the Authorities Call Response
Edouige Makosi, one of the protesters in Bunia, said, “With this way of managing things, Ebola will not end in this province. We ask the authorities to get involved at all levels so that a solution is found quickly.” The protest took place at the governor’s office, a neat symbol of where power sits and where exhausted workers are forced to beg for basic pay.
Officials have in the past blamed logistical issues for the payment delays. That’s the language of administration: delays, logistics, management. Meanwhile, nurses and other health workers say they have not received wages and bonuses for their work fighting Ebola since the outbreak was declared in mid-May.
Government data shows 674 patients are currently in isolation, most of them in Ituri, and at least 75% of contacts are being traced after exposure to patients. Authorities said 60% to 70% of new cases in the current outbreak are recorded outside of contacts being monitored, and that the outbreak is spreading at an “alarming” rate faster than efforts to track it. The medical charity Doctors Without Borders said this week that the outbreak is still “spreading at an alarming and unprecedented rate” and that the response, which has been expanding, “is still not reaching communities quickly enough to break transmission chains.”
Aid, Quarantine, and the Machinery Around It
World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus met with President Félix Tshisekedi in Kinshasa on Wednesday, his second visit to the country since the outbreak was declared in mid-May. Tedros, accompanied by Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention Director-General Jean Kaseya, said the situation remains deeply concerning as transmission continues to rise. During his visit to Congo on Wednesday, Tedros urged authorities to prioritize care and support for responders.
The United States announced an additional $242 million in funding for emergency Ebola response, preparedness and humanitarian support across the region. Families affected by Ebola have also appealed for stronger action. Georgine Imani, whose father died from Ebola, called on authorities to intensify efforts to find effective medicines and bring the outbreak under control.
Authorities also held nearly 200 boat passengers in quarantine near Kinshasa on Thursday after one traveler who had been aboard the boat died with symptoms matching Ebola. Dr. Jean Kaseya, Director-General of Africa CDC, said the passenger had become sick and disembarked nearly three weeks ago in Pimu, in the province of Mongala, more than 1,000 kilometers from Kinshasa along the Congo River, and later died. He said the capital has no confirmed Ebola case.
Authorities did not give the boat’s current location beyond saying it was near the capital, and did not say whether the nearly 200 remaining passengers were being held aboard the ship or on land, or how long they would be held. They said they were awaiting test results. Kaseya said, “We decided to do that even if some of them didn’t have symptoms because we want to make sure that we don’t miss anything.”
The outbreak keeps widening while the people asked to hold the line say they’re being left behind. The numbers climb. The salaries don’t.