Ebola Information

Beginning in late 2002 and continuing in 2003, Ebola virus has been causing devastating mortalities in humans and wildlife in the northwest section in the Republic of Congo. As of mid-March, at least 100 people have died in the villages of Kelle and Mbomo. In a village-created protected area (the Lossi Sanctuary) located between these two villages, the death of hundreds of gorillas and chimpanzees is now being discovered. To date, gorilla mortality appears to be about half of the previously estimated population of 1200 living in and around the sanctuary.

In response to this tragic outbreak, an emergency workshop was held in Brazzaville,  Republic of Congo, on March 4-6, 2003 to bring together government authorities, NGO’s (both conservation and human medicine) and virology experts to come up with immediate and long-term action plans to address the current Ebola Virus outbreak. The workshop was sanctioned by the Congolese Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Forests, with additional participants from the Ministry of Agriculture.   Experts and representatives from the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Gabon also participated to provide insights from the previous outbreaks in those countries. Representatives from CDC, WHO, Doctors without Borders, WWF, and the Wildlife Conservation Society also participated. The workshop was organized by ECOFAC, a regional conservation program supported by the European Community, under the auspices of the Congolese government.

This workshop represented the first multi-disciplinary gathering of experts to address Ebola and the relationship of the health of humans and wildlife. In itself, this was a ground breaking step, shifting from the old paradigm of working in isolation to resources to building teams of collaborators for tackling complex issues of common concern. This approach lead to actions are now taking place in the field.  But, much more needs to be accomplished to understand and fight the spread of Ebola and it’s impact on people and wildlife, and support for these larger efforts must be identified and obtained. 

For more information on Ebola, the current outbreak and recent outbreaks in the region, and the notes, slide presentations, and results from the recent Brazzaville workshop,  please review the documents below.   All of the following documents can be found in French at the ECOFAC website:  www.ecofac.org. 

Review of Recent History of Ebola in the Republic of Congo:   Background info.pdf (15 KB)

Map of Ebola related events in the region:   Map of Ebola outbreak areas.pdf (177 KB)

From the Brazzaville Workshop:

            List of Participants:  LIST OF PARTICIPANTS.pdf  (498 KB)         

Slide Presentation on Ebola Virus by Dr. Eric LeRoy from CIRMF: 

Eric LeRoy Ebola overview.pdf (1.9 MB)

Slide Presentation on Ebola effects on wildlife at the Lossi Sanctuary by Dr. Magdelena Bermejo from ECOFAC: Magda Bermejo - Lossi presentation.pdf (5.3 MB)

Slide Presentation on Human and Great Ape Health Program by Dr. William Karesh of WCS: WCS Gorilla Health 1 Presentation.pdf (2.0 MB)

Human Health Working Group notes:

Wildlife Working Group notes: 

Research Working Group notes:

Synthesized action plan:

Summary of workshop:  

Synthèse Réunion_jmf_anglais.doc (175 KB)

If you would like to help support our actions to help understand and prevent the devastating impacts to great apes and people, please Click Here, or contact ECOFAC at www.ecofac.org.