Editorial: The WHO Identifies Ebola Disease Due to Bundibugyo Virus as a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) as Vaccine Development Accelerates

The Bundibugyo virus is one of the viruses in the genus Orthoebolavirus and was first identified in 2007 during an Ebola outbreak in the Bundibugyo District of western Uganda.In early May 2026, the World Health Organization (WHO) was alerted to an outbreak of Bundibugyo virus in the Ituri province of north-eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), with cases also reported in the nearby North Kivu and South Kivu provinces, and some imported cases with limited local transmission in Uganda.On May 17, 2026, the WHO declared the ongoing outbreak of Ebola disease caused by the Bundibugyo virus a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC).The latest WHO data on June 19, 2026, showed that by June 17, 2026, the cumulative number of confirmed cases had risen to 896, including 232 deaths (a fatality rate of 26%), indicating that supportive treatments alone were not reducing mortality.Currently, there are no licensed vaccines with a specific indication for the prevention of Bundibugyo virus infection.On June 1st, 2026, the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) announced its recommendations to urgently accelerate the development of three investigational vaccines targeting the Bundibugyo Ebola virus, including the candidate vaccine, ChAdOx1 BDBV.On June 3, 2026, the European Medicines Agency (EMA), the African Medicines Agency (AMA), and African regulatory authorities issued a joint response to the ongoing Ebola outbreak in the DRC and Uganda, drawing on expertise from the WHO-AFRO African Vaccines Regulatory Forum (AVAREF).This editorial provides background on the current acceleration in vaccine development and the urgency of this response.