By Dr Bomby KABONGO | Executive Director
A. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Kheth’Impilo-DRC (KI-DRC) is pleased to present this report, which provides a summary of the project activities implemented and the results achieved from 1st July to 31st August 2026. During this reporting period, the KI-DRC emergency Ebola outbreak response project, carried out activities focused in risk communication and community engagement, covering the Beni Health zone, in North Kivu province in DRC.
The Eastern DRC has faced a new Ebola outbreak since 15 May 2026, with cases reported in five provinces to date. On 17 May 2026, WHO determined that this Ebola disease outbreak was caused by Bundibugyo virus disease in the DRC and Uganda, a strain with no licensed vaccine or approved targeted treatment, which constituted a Public Health Emergency of International Concern. Misinformation, misconceptions were factors likely to increase the risk of further spreading, making urgent community sensitization, IPC/WASH and coordinated response.
KI-DRC, is a locally established organization, founded in March 2017 and officially registered under certificate number MS1257/DESP/DR/RMY/179, with significant expertise to HIV program implementation and the management of epidemic diseases such Cholera, Covid-19, accumulated over six years of experience with PEPFAR funding in both Lualaba and Haut-Katanga provinces. With GlobalGiving funds, KI-DRC, proposed to implement a two-month rapid response to complement Ministry of Health and WHO-led outbreak control through risk communication and community engagement (RCCE), rumor management, IPC/WASH support, early alert referral, protection-oriented facility engagement and respectful sensitization on safe burial. This support was focused on the Béni Health zone in North Kivu province, in collaboration with the provincial health authorities and in alignment with the national priorities.
The Beni Health Zone has an estimated population of 631 268 inhabitants and health zone is rural, covering a land area of 21,677 km². It shares borders with ITURI province the Ebola epidemic epicenter on South and Uganda on its Eastern border.
The Beni Health Zone is therefore a strategically important area, particularly because it lies along the region’s main transportation routes for goods and experiences high population mobility between Ituri Province—the epicenter of the 17th Ebola epidemic in the DRC and the Uganda to the east.
In these regions, insecurity, armed conflict, weak governance, population movement, misinformation, misconceptions and poor governance are potential factors likely to create and increase the risk of further spreading, making urgent community sensitization, IPC/WASH interventions and coordinated response essential and urgent. Fear, misinformation and mistrust can lead to delayed reporting, unsafe home care, hidden deaths, attacks on health workers and contamination during funerals or other community gatherings.
Specifically, multiple tensions, including community resistance around safe burial and destruction of health structures or response facilities, show that many people do not yet fully understand why Ebola is dangerous, why bodies of Ebola victims are highly infectious, and why safe and dignified burial is necessary. This requires an urgent and sustained community-centred response.
The Provincial health Division are active in the province, spearheading the DRC’s Ebola outbreak response. They work closely with both public and private sector partners, as well as civil society organizations, to ensure effective and coordinated engagement in the fight against the Ebola epidemic.
In the aim of effective and efficient management and close monitoring of identified activities, KI-DRC subcontracted some community activities to CAFED, a community organization based in Beni, and has strengthened its management capacities to maximize the implementation of activities at the community level in order to reach the identified targets.
The official launch of the project, took place in Beni in July 2026, was witnessed by Government health who were supportive for the additional contributions brought by the KI-DRC project. Core activities undertook by KI-DRC and CAFED included to increase community understanding of Ebola/Bundibugyo disease through radio spots in local languages; trainings and sensitizations sessions among students and communities’ organizations; community mobilization at congregated settings, practical messaging on no direct contact with blood/body fluids, providing IPC/WASH starter kits and creating facility-community liaison groups. The implementation approach involved the collaboration with DPS, health zones, and trusted local structures. Community health workers (relais communautaires), youth peer educators, women leaders, faith leaders, teachers, were used as trusted messengers.
To strengthen data quality and reporting, weekly monitoring meeting were held to facilitate accurate and reliable data gathering. These resources aimed at improving the overall quality of information reported, thereby enhancing monitoring and evaluation of programmatic activities.
A. NARRATIVE OF PROGRAMMATIC ACTIVITIES
I. Project startup activities
The initiation of the KI-DRC Ebola project in Beni Health zone, commenced with formal contacts with different actors, a critical step to engage key stakeholders and secure their support for the project’s successful implementation. This process involved informing political, administrative, and health authorities about the planned activities, ensuring their understanding and commitment, and establishing a foundation for safe and effective project execution. Prominent entities, including the Provincial Health Division as well as selected community organizations, universities and institutes and community actors were contacted.
He contributed to operational preparation, stakeholder coordination, message development and adaptation, training support, activity monitoring, and documentation. Being based in Beni also enabled timely participation in coordination meetings and rapid resolution of implementation challenges.
Discussions covered awareness priorities, community concerns, preferred messages, alert and referral mechanisms, and collaboration with higher education institutions and community organizations. The involvement of the Provincial Health Division and Beni Health Zone linked the community intervention to the official public health response. As result, the KIRDC intervention was positioned as community support to the official local response, with technically validated messages and improved local coordination.
II. Specific activities carried out during the reporting period
A co-creation approach was used to develop and refine the intervention plan with local stakeholders. A joint planning meeting clarified the objectives, priority groups, institutions, activities, responsibilities, key messages, and monitoring arrangements.
Information, education and communication materials were developed in response to locally identified information needs. The process followed four stages: identifying information needs, drafting messages, pre-testing materials with representatives of the intended audiences, and finalizing the materials before production.
Pre-testing assessed comprehension, acceptability, vocabulary, visual clarity, and the extent to which the messages addressed local concerns. Priority topics included prevention, warning signs, rapid access to reliable information, hand hygiene, management of rumors and the infodemic, non-stigmatization, and safe and dignified burial practices.
The resulting package included leaflets, stickers, and a radio spot for mass communication. The pre-test report and final communication materials should be listed in the annex register once their numbers are confirmed.
A total of 21 student and women's leaders were trained to form a network of local mobilisers. The training was facilitated with support from provincial and health-zone personnel. Topics included essential Ebola knowledge, preventive measures, hand hygiene, interpersonal communication, risk communication, rumor and stigma management, and the role of community focal points in directing concerns to the appropriate services.
The training report and available training video is included in the annex register once their numbers are confirmed.
Infection prevention and control equipment were procured to support hand-hygiene practices in the three participating higher education institutions and among the targeted women's associations. This equipment helped translating awareness messages into visible, practical action in places used every day.
Community sensitization was the principal component of the intervention. It combined in-person and online sessions, outreach, distribution of communication materials, and local radio. The approach was designed to reach students, women, and the wider population through communication channels that were already familiar and trusted.
o Hybrid Ebola sensitization conference at ISTM Beni
A hybrid Ebola sensitization conference was held at ISTM Beni for both in-person and remote participants. This format expanded the activity's reach while maintaining an institutional setting. The discussion covered Ebola virus disease, prevention, warning signs, individual and collective responsibility, risk communication, rumor management, and the role of students in community preparedness.
Participation by health and academic authorities strengthened the credibility of the messages. A question-and-answer session captured participants' concerns and clarified misinformation circulating in the community. The conference was also advertised online to reach additional students in Beni.
o Community and women's sensitization in a local church
A sensitization session was conducted at a local CLEPA church and reached 260 men, 340 women, and 40 young people, for a total of 640 participants. The church name remains to be confirmed.
The session delivered clear messages on Ebola prevention, hand hygiene, warning signs requiring prompt referral, the importance of avoiding rumors and stigma, and safe and dignified burial. Women's leaders and faith leaders were recognized as essential messengers who could extend these messages through households and community networks.
o Distribution of printed educational materials
Leaflets and stickers reinforced message retention and kept prevention information visible after sensitization sessions. Twenty stickers were placed on handwashing equipment and near high-traffic handwashing points. A total of 2,000 leaflets were distributed to students, women's networks, and the wider community.
o Mass communication through local community radio
Radio Espoir, reported as Beni's most widely followed local community radio station, broadcasted the locally developed and pre-tested Ebola message twice each day during peak listening periods. The planned intensive broadcast period was 30 days.
The radio spot used simple, locally understandable, and non-stigmatizing language. It addressed routes of transmission, symptoms, preventive measures, and what listeners should do if they experienced symptoms or became aware of a possible alert. The report estimated that more than 10,000 people were reached. The audio spot is included in the annex register.
o Distribution of infection prevention materials
Following procurement, infection prevention materials were distributed to the three participating higher education institutions and three women's associations. The aim was to decentralize access to hand-hygiene supplies and create visible points that encouraged daily handwashing.
Beneficiary
Planned and delivered material support
III. Collaboration with Health Authorities and Local Stakeholders
Collaboration with the North Kivu Provincial Health Division and Beni Health Zone was central to the intervention. It aligned activities with official technical guidance and enabled qualified local health personnel to support training and sensitization sessions. Their involvement strengthened technical credibility and coherence with the provincial response.
Collaboration with CAFED facilitated access to local women's networks, participant mobilization, and dissemination of messages in community settings. Sensitizing women was considered particularly important because women could extend prevention information to household members and wider social networks.
IV. Challenges and Recommendations
Challenge
Potential effect
Recommendation
V. Conclusion
The KI-DRC Ebola project combined local expertise, official health-sector coordination, trusted community structures, trained mobilisers, locally adapted messages, mass communication, and practical infection prevention support. The reported completion of all planned core activities created a foundation for sustained community awareness. Continued rumor monitoring, replenishment of hand-hygiene supplies, refresher support for mobilisers, and documentation of stakeholder testimonies will be important for maintaining and demonstrating the intervention's contribution success.
KIRDC expresses acknowledges to GG for the funds raised, which helped to contribute to the Ebola response in eastern DRC. It's worth highlighting the invaluable efforts made locally by CAFED NGO, which was strengthened in capacity by KI-DRC, efforts that allowed to raise additional funds that have provided substantial support to the Ebola response in DRC.
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