The UN World Health Organization (WHO) has stepped up efforts to improve vaccination coverage in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) by providing vital logistical support, including boats and motorcycles to reach remote communities along the Congo River.
The initiative aims to curb the spread of preventable diseases such as polio, measles and yellow fever which remain a persistent threat in hard-to-reach areas.
Speedy response
WHO delivered 79 outboard motors, two speedboats, 14 motorcycles and other essential equipment worth $750,000 to the country’s Ministry of Public Health to expand vaccination campaigns in 89 health zones in nine provinces, the agency said in a news release on Tuesday (in French).
“These boats and vehicles will allow health workers to quickly reach children and communities who have long been cut off from essential services,” said Boureima Hama Sambo, WHO Representative in the DRC.
“This will significantly reduce the number of missed vaccinations and ensure that no child is left vulnerable to diseases that we can prevent.”
Fighting preventable diseases
The Congo River and its many tributaries form a vast network of isolated islands and remote settlements, particularly in provinces such as Équateur, Mongala, Tanganyika and Tshopo.
Many of these areas host large numbers of unvaccinated children, leading to repeated outbreaks of polio, measles and yellow fever, according to WHO.
In 2024, the DRC confirmed 25 cases of circulating variant poliovirus (types 1 and 2) and reported more than 102,500 suspected measles cases, resulting in over 2,200 deaths. Meningitis also remains a major concern, with 5,837 suspected cases and 465 deaths last year.
The WHO and DRC authorities have been working to address these challenges through mass immunization campaigns.
“Improving the availability of vaccines and other vital health supplies in the Expanded Programme on Immunization (EPI) branches, health zones and areas, is essential to strengthening the health system and implementing advanced and mobile vaccination strategies. Integration with other health services will make a difference, bringing significant benefits to the most vulnerable populations,” said Dr. Sambo.
Ongoing Mpox outbreak
Even as the country battles vaccine-preventable diseases, the DRC continues to face a large mpox outbreak. Between 1 January and 2 March 2025, the country recorded 2,415 confirmed cases, with 1,080 of them occurring in the last six weeks alone.
WHO has declared the mpox resurgence a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC) and warned that the virus is circulating in at least ten provinces.
The outbreak is being fuelled by sustained human-to-human transmission, particularly in the capital, Kinshasa, where genomic sequencing indicates that one specific strain has persisted since July 2024.
Impact of violence
Complicating response efforts is the ongoing violence in the eastern DRC, which disrupted healthcare services and made it difficult to track and contain the virus. In February, the virus was detected for the first time in the south-central Lomami province, expanding its reach further.
The WHO is also monitoring new travel-related mpox cases that have emerged outside the country, including in Belgium, France, Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States.
Meanwhile, South Africa has reported its first cluster of mpox cases linked to the same strain circulating in the DRC.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of UN News.
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