The DRC Ebola outbreak has exposed the consequences of global health underfunding

Various media outlets have described the current Ebola outbreak affecting eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Uganda as “a perfect storm.”1 A convergence of critical factors has made the outbreak difficult to control: a rare virus for which there are no licensed vaccines or therapeutics, combined with transmission occurring in conflict affected areas characterised by high population mobility, weak health infrastructure, and longstanding challenges around community trust and engagement.The outbreak is caused by Bundibugyo, a rare Ebola-causing virus identified in two previous outbreaks, Uganda in 2007 and DRC in 2012. Unlike Ebola virus (formerly Zaire ebolavirus), which caused the devastating West African epidemic of 2014-16, there are currently no approved vaccines or therapeutics for Bundibugyo virus disease. This raises a difficult question: if Ebola has been recognised for decades, why do we still not have vaccines for all Ebola viruses?The answer reflects an uncomfortable reality about how the…