CEPI funds $8.5M Bundibugyo Ebola vaccine amid deadly DRC outbreak
CEPI announced on 30 July 2026 that it will provide up to $8.5 million to accelerate manufacturing of a Bundibugyo Ebola vaccine candidate through a partnership with Singapore-based Hilleman Laboratories, which will use the rVSV platform to produce clinical trial doses. The announcement comes as the outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo becomes the second-deadliest Ebola outbreak on record, with the Africa CDC reporting 1,521 deaths and 3,442 confirmed cases. The outbreak, declared a Public Health Emergency of International Concern by WHO on 17 May 2026, is centred in Ituri Province where hospitals report over 80 % bed occupancy and 797 patients in isolation. Uganda has declared itself Ebola-free after closing parts of its border with the DRC following an imported case that died in Kampala. Meanwhile, the WHO has launched a $518 million six-month emergency response plan for the DRC and Uganda. CEPI and Hilleman say they plan to transfer the vaccine technology to a large-scale manufacturer if early trials succeed, aiming to supply additional doses for outbreak-affected countries. Given the virus's rapid spread and the lack of an approved Bundibugyo vaccine, should Nigerian health authorities increase airport screening for travelers from Central Africa or support regional vaccine research efforts to reduce future risk?