Information Dynamics, Risk Communication and Community Engagement in the Ebola Bundibugyo Virus Disease Response
The Bundibugyo virus disease outbreak in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo is unfolding in an environment where trust has become as critical as public health capacity. With no licensed vaccines or therapeutics currently available for the Bundibugyo strain, the response depends on communities choosing to seek care, report symptoms, participate in contact tracing and support safe and dignified burials.
Drawing on the IFRC World Disasters Report 2026 and the latest evidence from the field, this paper examines how harmful information is influencing the outbreak and the humanitarian response. It explores the narratives, actors and information channels shaping public perceptions, assesses their operational impact, and provides practical recommendations for responders across four possible future outbreak scenarios.
Download the paper to understand how healthier information environments can strengthen trust, improve outbreak control and support more effective humanitarian action.
©2026 IFRC Solferino Academy
This paper was authored by:
Ben Ramalingam, Senior Visiting Fellow, IFRC Solferino Academy
Thomas Moran, Technical Officer, Community Protection and Resilience, WHO
Aarunima Bhatnagar, Global Risk Communication & Community Engagement Technical Lead, UNICEF
Dr. Lasha Goguadze, Lead, Health, Climate, Migration and Risk Communication, IFRC
Comment and feedback were gratefully received from reviewers: Carla Daher, UNICEF; Gwen Eamer, IFRC; Melissa Leach, Cambridge Conservation Initiative; Anaïs Legand, WHO; Hayley MacGregor, IDS; Gillian McKay, ELRHA; Riccardo Polastro, WHO; Alexandra Sicotte-Levesque, IFRC; Kai von Harbou, WHO. The paper was copy edited by Roo Griffiths and designed by Yann le Floc’h
This paper was produced by the IFRC Solferino Academy, the humanitarian think-tank of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC).
The views and opinions expressed in this publication are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official positions of the IFRC, its Secretariat, its member National Societies, the WHO or UNICEF.
Ben Ramalingam
Ben Ramalingam is a researcher, strategist, and author specialising in systems change, humanitarian futures, innovation, and global risk. He currently leads the United Nations Strategic Review on Child Rights Mainstreaming with UNICEF and the Executive Office of the UN Secretary-General. Previously, he served as Chief Strategic Development Officer at UNICEF UK and Director of Strategy and Innovation at the British Red Cross.
He has led major humanitarian innovation initiatives, including the UK Humanitarian Innovation Hub, and has advised on frontier technologies, climate risk, and organisational transformation. Ben is the author of the bestselling book Aid on the Edge of Chaos and co-author of Upshift. His work has contributed to major international reports, including the IPCC Special Report on Extreme Weather Events, and UNICEF’s State of the World’s Children. In 2020, he was recognised as one of the humanitarian sector’s “Change Makers of the Decade” for his contributions to improving global crisis response.
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