GENEVA, July 1, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - The deadly Ebola outbreak in the Democratic 
Republic of Congo threatens tens of thousands of jobs and could cost Africa 
up to $3.6 billion, the United Nations warned.

The UN Development Programme said the epidemic was "sparking a far-reaching 
socioeconomic crisis which could push 985,000 more people into poverty".

"The Ebola crisis also risks eliminating tens of thousands of jobs, 
disrupting education and healthcare services, and costing African economies 
up to $3.6 billion if broader regional and global shocks intensify," UNDP 
said in a statement on Tuesday.

The poverty shock -- which would disproportionately affect women -- would 
primarily impact the DR Congo and its neighbours, notably Uganda, Rwanda, and 
South Sudan.

"While the immediate public health threat is severe and requires containment 
measures such as quarantines, some of the broader restrictions on travel and 
trade are inadvertently devastating local economies and informal 
livelihoods," UNDP warned.

In the DRC, there have been 1,333 cases and 399 deaths confirmed, while 189 
people have recovered from the virus, according to figures from the World 
Health Organization.

"Ebola does not stop at the hospital gate," said Ahunna Eziakonwa, UNDP's 
Africa regional director.

"It affects livelihoods, education, food security, trade, public finances and 
trust. If we treat this Ebola outbreak solely as a health challenge, we risk 
missing the much larger development emergency unfolding around it."

UNDP said that even under a baseline scenario where the virus is successfully 
contained in the DRC and Uganda -- which has seen 20 confirmed cases -- the 
economic damage would be "severe".

The DRC is projected to see "real GDP losses exceeding $1 billion and the 
loss of 55,000 jobs", it said.

"Trade disruptions, border restrictions, transport delays, declining consumer 
confidence and interruptions to informal markets could reduce continental GDP 
by US$2.37 billion, even if transmission remains largely contained," the 
agency warned.

UNDP recommended direct cash transfers to the most vulnerable, shifting from 
border closures to targeted screening, and setting up emergency financing 
mechanisms to ensure maternal, reproductive and infant healthcare services 
can continue during the crisis.

The conflict-hit northeastern Ituri province is the epicentre of the DRC's 
latest outbreak of Ebola.

This epidemic of the viral haemorrhagic fever is caused by the Bundibugyo 
species of the virus, for which there is no vaccine or specific treatment.