KINSHASA/LONDON — September 1, 2026 — The United Kingdom has announced a new £51 million funding package to support efforts to contain the growing Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

The commitment raises Britain's total contribution to the current DRC Ebola response to £78 million.

According to the official announcement from the UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office, the new package includes £40 million from humanitarian crisis, contingency and unallocated funding, alongside £11 million redirected from existing FCDO programmes.

The funding will support disease surveillance, frontline health workers, infection prevention and control, access to treatment, community outreach and safe and dignified burials.

British public-health specialists have also been deployed to support the response. Their work includes epidemiology, infection control, risk communication, community engagement and data modelling.

The UK is supporting the regional effort through partnerships with the World Health Organization, Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, United Nations agencies and humanitarian organizations working on the front line.

UK Minister for Africa Kirsty McNeill said the country was accelerating its response as the outbreak intensified, stressing the need for rapid international action to save lives and reduce the risk of further spread.

The British government said thousands of vulnerable people are expected to benefit from the additional assistance.

The new announcement expands earlier UK support for the government-led Ebola response in the DRC and adds financial backing to the technical assistance already being provided by British health specialists in the country and across the region.

The package is one of the largest foreign-government funding commitments announced for the current outbreak.