Samaritan's Purse opens Ebola clinic in DRC amid WHO funding cuts

A disaster‑response team from the humanitarian group Samaritan’s Purse arrived in the Ituri province of the Democratic Republic of Congo, where more than 1,000 Ebola cases have been reported. The team is establishing an Ebola treatment centre, coordinating with the DRC health ministry, and has flown over 39 tons of medical supplies and protective equipment from Uganda. Franklin Graham, president of Samaritan’s Purse, said the effort aims to save lives and stop the virus’s spread.

Researchers warn that the world is now less equipped to confront the next pandemic. Recent outbreaks of Ebola in the DRC, hantavirus in Uganda and a cruise‑ship incident highlight the need for coordinated international action. They point to a steep decline in donor funding for the WHO and global health programmes—following the United States’ exit from the agency and cuts by the United Kingdom, the EU and others—creating a $54 billion financing gap and projecting up to 14 million extra deaths by 2030. The reduced resources threaten timely detection, response and capacity‑building for future health emergencies.