Question to the Department for International Development:

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, whether the current Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo is an immediate priority for his Department; and whether he has immediate plans to travel to the region.

The current Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is an immediate priority for the Department for International Development (DFID), we have dedicated teams leading a coordinated UK HMG response effort. The UK is one of the leading donors to the response in DRC, and preparedness efforts in the region.

DFID have so far contributed £33.5 million to Ebola in DRC in 2018/19. Moreover, we are the leading donor by far for regional preparedness, contributing £14 million across the most-at-risk countries (mainly for Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi and South Sudan). We have also provided specialist staff into the response and are continuing to push other donors to step up their engagement. Beyond funding and technical support, we are actively lobbying to improve management of the response, including coordination. While the efforts of the Government of DRC and the WHO have been laudable, significant improvements must be made in terms of coordination and management to bring the outbreak to an end.

I plan to visit North Kivu in Eastern DRC later this month to understand the situation on the ground and how the UK can continue to support the response. One immediate priority is the need to galvanise other donors to support the response and preparedness efforts. We are also working closely with responders on the ground to ensure management and coordination of the response reflects the severity of the current situation and the high risk of further spread, and to build trust with affected communities.