The Pandemic Fund

Background

In 2024, a new strain of mpox was detected in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), with cases surging to nearly 16,000 by August. In response to the growing outbreak across the DRC and other African countries, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared it a Public Health Emergency of International Concern, underscoring the urgent need for action. The Pandemic Fund responded quickly and fast-tracked US$128.9 million to support 10 countries affected by the disease, including US$24.9 million for the DRC. The grant will fund the country’s Strengthening One Health Preparedness and Response Capabilities against Pandemics (SOPRAP) project, which aims to curb the spread of the virus and bolster the country’s health system. The project focuses on five provinces: North Kivu, South Kivu, Ituri, Bas-Uele, and Sankuru. The grant catalyzed an additional US$5.6 million in co-investment and US$1.6 million in co-financing. The project’s Implementing Entities (IEs) are the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), UNICEF, and the WHO.  

The DRC has long been affected by conflict and natural disasters. Many health centers also lack safe water, sanitation, and hygiene, which can accelerate the spread of diseases such as cholera, Ebola, and mpox. By 2024, more than 25.4 million people were in need of humanitarian assistance, including almost 20 million people requiring emergency health care. These challenges highlight the need to strengthen the country’s public health prevention, preparedness, and response (PPR) capabilities.

The SOPRAP project prioritizes multisectoral collaboration, which aligns with the Pandemic Fund’s approach. The Congolese Ministry of Public Health, Hygiene, and Prevention leads the project, with support from the Ministry of Environment, Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Fisheries and Livestock, and the three IEs. Additionally, the project engages local non-governmental and civil society organizations, including the Conseil National des ONGs de Santé.
 

Project objectives

The Pandemic Fund grant will help the DRC respond to the active threat of mpox and promote long-term pandemic preparedness. The five provinces selected for the project share several key characteristics: high vulnerability to epidemics and pandemics, significant migrant movement, limited existing capacity to detect and respond to public health threats, and alignment with other initiatives that could complement the SOPRAP project.
 

Implementation arrangements and key components

The SOPRAP project is structured around three areas, aligned with the Pandemic Fund’s priorities: surveillance, laboratory systems, and workforce development. Activities within each area are detailed below. 

1. Strengthening surveillance and early warning systems for epizootics, epidemics, and pandemics. This part of the project focuses on implementing the Integrated Disease Surveillance and Response System, developing a national, community-based surveillance strategy for animal health, boosting the field epidemiology staff’s ability to conduct multisectoral investigations, and increasing capacity at designated points of entry to the country to ensure compliance with the International Health Regulations (IHR). This work also includes deploying rapid response teams and equipping them with the necessary tools to collect and transmit data, which is critical to the mpox response. Additionally, it focuses on drafting or updating standard operating procedures to strengthen environmental surveillance, laboratory quality, and human resource development, while enhancing One Health and multisectoral coordination.
2. Increasing laboratory capacity to detect and confirm epizootics, epidemics, and pandemics. Activities in this area include enabling veterinary and epidemiological field units to safely collect, store, and refer samples. The project also aims to enhance laboratory capacity to diagnose epidemic-prone diseases, conduct genomic surveillance, and implement bio-surveillance, biosafety, and biosecurity measures. In response to the mpox outbreak, efforts will prioritize supplying laboratories with essential equipment, tests, and reagents. Mobile, integrated laboratory services are also planned to reach remote and underserved areas.
3. Strengthening workforce capacity to implement the IHR. This component of the project focuses on training health and community workers, wildlife agents, district management teams, point-of-entry staff, and other relevant workers in disease surveillance. It also aims to enhance the capacity of rapid response teams to investigate, assess, and respond to public health risks effectively. These trainings will include simulation exercises specifically focused on mpox. The project also aims to increase the proportion of health, veterinary, and environmental staff trained in field epidemiology and to raise awareness among public health experts and veterinarians about the IHR, animal health codes, and the biodiversity convention. Additional priorities include strengthening civil society and community engagement, establishing an environmental and social safeguarding system, and upgrading water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) infrastructure.

The SOPRAP project aligns with FAO’s Emergency Centre for Transboundary Animal Diseases and the WHO’s Emergency Preparedness and Response Program in Africa. UNICEF leads the coordination and oversight of community-based surveillance through established approaches, such as Community Action Cells—groups of volunteers, including community health workers, led by village chiefs.
 

Expected outcomes

Through the SOPRAP project, the DRC aims to contain the mpox outbreak while strengthening disease surveillance and pandemic preparedness capacities. This will be done with a focus on the inclusion of girls and women, the indigenous Pygmy people, and other marginalized populations. The country expects to:

1. Improve the rapid prevention and detection of public health events through genomic surveillance, efficient data collection and sharing, and community engagement.
2. Enhance the swift detection and investigation of zoonoses by field epidemiologists, ensuring timely responses to emerging threats.
3. Strengthen the Public Health Emergency Operations Center to effectively coordinate multiple organizations, while upholding environmental safeguards and the rights of marginalized populations.
4. Promote multisectoral collaboration aligned with the One Health approach, fostering coordinated action across the human, animal, and environmental health sectors and ensuring the transparent use of project funds.