Democratic Republic of Congo: Ebola disease clinical trials must result in equitable access to treatment
Ongoing clinical trials for Bundibugyo Ebola virus therapeutics provide an important opportunity to make successful treatments accessible to all who need them.
Two major pharmaceutical companies are currently developing therapeutic candidates for potential treatment for Ebola disease caused by the Bundibugyo virus. The virus is responsible for the ongoing outbreak in Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
However, Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) is calling for greater transparency on their development, warning that past experience has shown that clinical success alone does not guarantee equitable and timely access to proven treatments, and effective treatments can still face delays, limited stockpiles, and reliance on ad hoc donations that restrict availability.
MSF has now published Therapeutics for the 2026 Bundibugyo Ebola disease outbreak: access gaps and recommendations, a technical brief that analyzes access challenges related to the three Bundibugyo Ebola Virus (BDBV) therapeutic candidates being developed — MBP134, remdesivir and obeldesivir. These candidates are currently being evaluated in DRC through the PARTNERS and EBO-PEP clinical trials. MSF is a participant in the trial which is sponsored by the World Health Organization
Mapp Biopharmaceutical and Gilead Sciences are developing the three candidates with public and philanthropic funding, including for clinical evaluations. The MSF brief highlights that the publicly available information on pricing, licensing, supply and post-trial access remains very limited, despite repeated calls for transparency.
The brief is designed to inform pharmaceutical corporations, policymakers, funders, UN agencies and civil society organizations about the status of the Bundibugyo virus therapeutic candidates, key access concerns and recommendations to ensure equitable access if any of these treatments prove effective.
A window of opportunity for equity
“As clinical trials for promising Bundibugyo Ebola virus therapeutics move forward in DRC, there is a window of opportunity to ensure that any effective tools are accessible to the people who need them most,” says Monica Rull, physician and deputy executive director of MSF Access. “Experience from past Ebola disease outbreaks has shown that scientific progress alone is not enough. Greater transparency and clear planning for financing, stockpiling and the inclusion of children in development and access strategies are essential to prevent the same delays and inequities from being repeated.”
“If access is considered only after efficacy is proven, access to future Bundibugyo virus treatments may once again be determined by non-transparent commercial decisions by pharmaceutical corporations and reactive last-minute measures. Funders, researchers and policymakers engaged in therapeutics clinical trials must act now to include the right access conditions in a transparent way.”
