"Ebola takes the people children depend on and unravels their lives” - UNICEF
This is a summary of what was said by Halimatou Amadou, Chief of Communication, UNICEF Democratic Republic of the Congo – to whom quoted text may be attributed – at today’s press briefing at the Palais des Nations in Geneva
BUNIA, Democratic Republic of the Congo, 6 October 2026 – “More than 1,900 children have lost one or both parents or caregivers to Ebola in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, or been separated from them, since the outbreak was declared in May this year.
“In Ituri, 1,581 children. In North Kivu, 322.
“And these are the children we know about. Because figures cover only the areas where UNICEF works with social affairs teams in the affected provinces.
“Lina* is one of them. She is only seven months old. Her mother died of Ebola. Her father is missing.
“I met her last week at a UNICEF-supported nursery in Bunia, next to an Ebola treatment centre. Her grandfather lives nearby. He has already come to see her twice, and the team hopes they will be together soon.
“Feza, the nursery supervisor, told me, ‘Every time a child walks through the doors, we hold on to the same hope – that the parents will recover and the family will be reunited.’
“Bunia is at the epicentre of the Ebola outbreak in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. I have been here over the past week with UNICEF’s Director of Emergency Operations, Lucia Elmi.
“Feza also told me about Raphael*, an eight-month-old who survived Ebola but lost eight members of his family. He stayed at the nursery for more than three weeks, until his older brother could take him home.
“Ebola takes the people children depend on and unravels their lives.
“A parent falls ill, and a child may be exposed. The parent is taken for treatment or dies.
“And at the very moment a child most needs someone, fear and stigma can keep relatives and neighbours away.
“And children are not only losing their parents. They are also losing their own lives.
“As of 29 September, at least 2,076 children had been confirmed with Ebola. At least 1,162 had died.
“Children make up just over one in four confirmed cases, but around one in three deaths.
“For the youngest, it is even worse. Seven in ten children under five with confirmed Ebola have died. Just weeks ago, it was six in ten.
“Many die before the virus is ever detected, before they ever reach treatment.
“The outbreak persists in Ituri and in North Kivu. These provinces are already home to some 4.4 million displaced people.
“But in Bunia, I also saw what works.
“Next to Ebola treatment centres in Ituri, North Kivu, and South Kivu, UNICEF supports 12 nurseries. They care for babies and young children who have been exposed to the virus, who are on their own, or whose parents are in treatment.
“Children are fed. They are held. They are cared for. They are also watched closely, so that if symptoms appear, they get paediatric care fast.
“Neema, one of the caregivers, is a medical student. She caught Ebola while working as a paediatric intern, and survived. She lost doctors, nurses, including her supervisor, to the virus. Now she cares for the children the virus has left on their own.
“Under a tent at the nursery, children were playing and laughing. Neema told me that when families are reunited, ‘they are moments of real joy.’
“That is what a nursery does. It keeps a child safe, but it also gives them back someone to hold them, a routine, and a chance to be a child again.
“That is why UNICEF is calling for a nursery at every Ebola treatment centre. We also need to maintain essential health services, so children are detected early, referred quickly for Ebola care, and protected from dying of other common childhood diseases.
“We are also calling for quality paediatric care inside treatment centres and more social workers in hotspot areas. We also need support to trace families, to help the relatives who take children in, and to get children back to school.
“UNICEF needs US$113.4 million for its Ebola response in DRC. So far, we have received just over a third.
“On the way back from the nursery, the scene changed. I saw where vendors had lined up coffins along the roadside. Coffins of every size. A little farther ahead, a family walked slowly to a burial.
“That afternoon, I saw life and death side by side. Later, at a school, a child said something I will not forget: ‘Ebola is angry.’ Those three words carried all the fear and confusion this outbreak has placed on children.
“With the right support, no child should have to face this alone.”
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* Names have been changed to protect the children’s privacy and identity.
Orphan: A child whose one parent or both parents have died.
Separated child: A child who has been separated from both parents, or from their previous legal or customary primary caregiver, but who may still be accompanied by other relatives.
Unaccompanied child: A child who has been separated from both parents and other relatives and is not being cared for by an adult who, by law or custom, is responsible for doing so.
Data on confirmed Ebola cases and deaths in DRC are derived from DHIS2 updates. Child estimates are based on confirmed cases for which age data were available.
Data on orphaned and separated children were compiled by the Division of Social Affairs under the Mental Health and Psychosocial Support sub-pillar.
For more information, please contact UNICEF UK Media team at [email protected] or 0208 375 6030.
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