UNRIC Library Backgrounder: Ebola

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Ebola disease is a rare but severe illness, caused by a virus belonging to the genus orthoebolavirus of the Filoviridae family. Death rates have varied from 25% to 90% in past outbreaks.
Six species of orthoebolaviruses have been identified to date, with three known to cause large outbreaks:

  • Ebola virus (EBOV) causing Ebola virus disease (EVD)
  • Sudan virus (SUDV) causing Sudan virus disease (SVD)
  • Bundibugyo virus (BDBV) causing Bundibugyo virus disease (BVD).

The animal reservoir of the viruses is unknown, but current evidence suggests that fruit bats (Pteropodidae) may be a host.

Source: World Health Organization (WHO) – Q&A: What is the Ebola virus disease?

 

DR Congo: Ebola Outbreak – May 2026: https://reliefweb.int/disaster/ep-2026-000071-cod
DR Congo: Ebola Outbreak – Sep 2025: https://reliefweb.int/disaster/ep-2025-000157-cod
Uganda: Ebola Outbreak – Jan 2025: https://reliefweb.int/disaster/ep-2025-000017-uga
Uganda: Ebola Outbreak – Sep 2022: https://reliefweb.int/disaster/ep-2022-000315-uga
DR Congo: Ebola Outbreak – Aug 2022: https://reliefweb.int/disaster/ep-2022-000302-cod
DR Congo: Ebola Outbreak – Apr 2022: https://reliefweb.int/disaster/ep-2022-000205-cod
DR Congo: Ebola Outbreak – Oct 2021: https://reliefweb.int/disaster/ep-2021-000157-cod
DR Congo: Ebola Outbreak – Feb 2021: https://reliefweb.int/disaster/ep-2021-000014-cod
Guinea: Ebola Outbreak – Jan 2021: https://reliefweb.int/disaster/ep-2021-000016-gin
DR Congo: Ebola Outbreak – Jun 2020: https://reliefweb.int/disaster/ep-2020-000144-cod
DR Congo: Ebola Outbreak – Aug 2018: https://reliefweb.int/disaster/ep-2018-000129-cod
DR Congo: Ebola Outbreak – May 2018: https://reliefweb.int/disaster/ep-2018-000049-cod
DR Congo: Ebola Outbreak – May 2017: https://reliefweb.int/disaster/ep-2017-000048-cod
DR Congo: Ebola Outbreak – Aug 2014: https://reliefweb.int/disaster/ep-2014-000118-cod
West Africa: Ebola Outbreak – Mar 2014: http://reliefweb.int/disaster/ep-2014-000041-gin

 

UN Entities

 

Secretary-General

The Secretary-General held a High-level Meeting on Response to the Ebola Virus Disease Outbreak on 25 September 2014:
https://press.un.org/en/2014/sg2207.doc.htm

 

General Assembly

Informal Meeting of the General Assembly – Progress of the Ebola outbreak response and recovery efforts, 13 January 2016:

General Assembly Information Meeting on Ebola, 18 February 2015:

General Assembly Briefing on the Ebola virus outbreak, 20 January 2015:
http://www.un.org/pga/200115_birfing-ebola/

Ebola virus outbreak – General Assembly, Informal meeting, 69th session (10 October 2014):

General Assembly meeting on 19 September 2014 on “Measures to contain and combat the recent Ebola outbreak in West Africa”:

 

Security Council

8590th meeting of the Security Council on Peace and Security in Africa regarding Ebola, 2 August 2019:

7502nd meeting of the Security Council on Peace and Security in Africa – The global response to the 2013 Ebola virus disease outbreak, 13 August 2015:

7318th meeting of the Security Council on Peace and Security in Africa, 21 November 2014:

7279th meeting of the Security Council on Peace and Security in Africa regarding Ebola, 14 October 2014:

Emergency Session on Peace and Security in Africa (Ebola), 18 September 2014:

 

Economic and Social Council

Special Meeting on “Ebola: A threat to sustainable development”, 5 December 2014
https://www.un.org/ecosoc/en/events/2014/ebola-%E2%80%93-threat-sustainable-development

 

Selected UN documents

  • Security Council resolution 2439 (2018) / adopted by the Security Council at its 8385th meeting, on 30 October 2018: https://docs.un.org/S/RES/2439(2018)
    on condemning attacks by armed groups in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and their role in exacerbating the Ebola virus outbreak
  • A/71/810 (24 February 2017): Lessons learned exercise on the coordination activities of the United Nations Mission for Ebola Emergency Response: report of the Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions: https://docs.un.org/A/71/810
    “Annex: United Nations Mission for Ebola Emergency Response: budget proposals, final appropriation and actual expenditure”: p. 11-13.
  • A/70/737 (4 Mar. 2016): Lessons learned exercise on the coordination activities of the United Nations Mission for Ebola Emergency Response: report of the Secretary-General: https://docs.un.org/A/70/737 and https://docs.un.org/A/70/737/Corr.1
    Prepared in response to General Assembly resolution 69/274 B.  “Annex: Asset disposal breakdown”: p. 23
  • A/69/1014 (1 September 2015): Letter dated 1 September 2015 from the Secretary-General addressed to the President of the General Assembly: https://docs.un.org/A/69/1014
    Reports on the work of the UN in the response to the Ebola outbreak in West Africa and covers developments from 1 to 31 July 2015, the 300-day mark since the establishment of the UN Mission for Ebola Emergency Response (UNMEER); records activities carried out by the Special Envoy on Ebola and UNMEER, and provides an update on progress made in the Ebola response pursuant to General Assembly resolution 69/1 since the update of 24 July 2015 (A/69/992).
  • A/69/992 (24 July 2015): Letter dated 24 July 2015 from the Secretary-General addressed to the President of the General Assembly: https://docs.un.org/A/69/992
    Reports the work of the UN in the response to the Ebola outbreak in West Africa and covers developments from 1 June through 1 July 2015 since the establishment of the UN Mission for Ebola Emergency Response (UNMEER); provides an update on progress made in the Ebola response pursuant to General Assembly resolution 69/1 since the update of 16 June 2015 (A/69/939).
  • A/69/908 (26 May 2015): Letter dated 22 May 2015 from the Secretary-General addressed to the President of the General Assembly: https://docs.un.org/A/69/908
    Reports the work of the UN in the response to the Ebola outbreak in West Africa and covers developments from 1 Apr. to 1 May 2015; provides an update on progress made in the Ebola response pursuant to General Assembly resolution 69/1 since the update of 16 Apr. 2015 (A/69/871).
  • S/2015/282 (27 April 2015): Letter dated 23 April 2015 from the Chair of the Peacebuilding Commission addressed to the President of the Security Council: https://docs.un.org/S/2015/282
    Reports, in the capacity as Chair of the Peacebuilding Commission, the visits to Liberia, Sierra Leone, Guinea and Senegal/UN Office for West Africa, from 5 to 10 Apr. 2015, to assess the impact of the Ebola crisis on peacebuilding.
  • A/69/871 (16 April 2015): Letter dated 16 April 2015 from the Secretary-General addressed to the President of the General Assembly: https://docs.un.org/A/69/871
    Reports the work of the UN in the response to the Ebola outbreak in West Africa and covers developments from 1 Mar. to 1 Apr. 2015; provides an update on progress made in the Ebola response pursuant to General Assembly resolution 69/1 since the update of 13 Mar. 2015 (A/69/812).
  • A/69/812 (13 March 2015): Letter dated 12 March 2015 from the Secretary-General addressed to the President of the General Assembly: https://docs.un.org/A/69/812
    The report covers developments from 1 February to 1 March 2015, the 150-day mark since the of UNMEER.
  • A/69/759 (10 February 2015): Letter dated 10 February 2015 from the Secretary-General addressed to the President of the General Assembly: https://docs.un.org/A/69/759
    Reports the work of the UN in the response to the Ebola outbreak in West Africa and covers developments from 1 Jan.-1 Feb. 2015; provides an update on progress made in the Ebola response pursuant to General Assembly resolution 69/1 since the update of 12 Jan. 2015 (A/69/720).
  • A/69/720 (13 January 2015): Letter dated 12 January 2015 from the Secretary-General addressed to the President of the General Assembly: https://docs.un.org/A/69/720
    Reports the work of the UN in the response to the Ebola outbreak in West Africa and covers developments from 1 Nov. 2014-1 Jan. 2015.
  • A/RES/69/132 (Resolution adopted by the General Assembly on 11 December 2014): Global health and foreign policy: https://docs.un.org/A/RES/69/132
  • A/69/573 (12 November 2014): Letter dated 12 November 2014 from the Secretary-General addressed to the President of the General Assembly: https://docs.un.org/A/69/573
    Reports the work of the UN in the response to the Ebola outbreak in West Africa and covers developments from 19 Sept. through 31 Oct. 2014.
  • A/RES/69/3 (Resolution adopted by the General Assembly on 9 October 2014): United Nations Mission for Ebola Emergency Response: https://docs.un.org/A/RES/69/3
  • A/69/408 (30 Sept. 2014): United Nations Mission for Ebola Emergency Response and the Office of the Special Envoy on Ebola : report of the Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions: https://docs.un.org/A/69/408
  • A/69/404 (24 September 2014): United Nations Mission for Ebola Emergency Response and the Office of the Special Envoy on Ebola; Report of the Secretary-General: https://docs.un.org/A/69/404
  • A/RES/69/1 (Resolution adopted by the General Assembly on 19 September 2014): Measures to contain and combat the recent Ebola outbreak in West Africa: https://docs.un.org/A/RES/69/1
    Annexes (p. 6-10): 1. Summary of estimated preliminary resource requirements – 2. Staffing summary — 3. UNMEER/Office of the Special Envoy structure.
  • A/69/389-S/2014/679 (18 September 2014): Identical letters dated 17 September 2014 from the Secretary-General addressed to the President of the General Assembly and the President of the Security Council: https://docs.un.org/A/69/389
    In this document the Secretary-General sets forth the Mission’s six guiding principles and 12 actions deemed critical by the Senior United Nations System Coordinator to carry out the Mission’s aims.
  • Further documents – click here

 

Selected press releases, statements & news stories

 

Further Information

 

12 June 2026
not an official document – for information only
https://unric.org/en/unric-library-backgrounder-ebola/

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