Wiza Bondele works daily at a hospital in Congo with one objective: to slow the record-breaking, fast-growing Ebola outbreak.
At an Ebola treatment hospital located in eastern Ituri province, which serves as the epicenter of Congo’s current outbreak, Bondele disinfects contaminated areas, checks visitors' temperatures, and enforces handwashing protocols—tasks that expose him to infection risk.
However, like hundreds of other frontline health workers, including drivers and burial teams, Bondele states he has been working without compensation since the outbreak was declared in mid-May within one of Congo’s most remote and conflict-affected regions.
Concerns over poor welfare for frontline staff have been a major issue during the outbreak. Payment problems and attacks on health facilities and teams have caused some workers to quit, thereby disrupting critical care in an outbreak that authorities report is spreading at an alarming rate, outpacing tracking efforts.
Ebola transmits through direct contact with infected individuals' bodily fluids or contaminated materials, a risk Bondele fully understands.
“Sometimes patients are bleeding or vomiting blood. We clean and disinfect those places,” the 29-year-old infection control worker told The Associated Press while on duty. “With risks like that, we deserve salaries.”
Latest government data indicates confirmed cases in this outbreak have surpassed 4,000, resulting in over 1,800 deaths. This marks the second-largest Ebola outbreak recorded, following the 2014-2016 West Africa outbreak which saw more than 28,000 cases and over 11,000 fatalities. Another outbreak from 2018-2020 claimed at least 2,200 lives.
This current outbreak has been linked to the Bundibugyo virus, for which no approved vaccines or treatments currently exist.
Workers Continue Despite Financial Strain
Bondele, who previously participated in Congo’s 2018 Ebola response, returned when the virus reappeared, hoping his experience could safeguard his community in Ituri, which accounts for nearly 90% of the Ebola cases.
Instead, he found himself among many workers continuing to report for duty without receiving the promised monthly salary of $510.
Officials have assured them that outstanding payments will be made, Bondele reported. Workers have registered their details for mobile money payments and signed attendance sheets, awaiting payment notifications, but only some received funds.
Bondele noted that even colleagues who were paid mentioned they had not received the full amount.
Congolese authorities did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Thursday. In previous instances, officials cited logistical issues as the reason for delayed payments.
Without his salary, daily necessities such as paying rent, purchasing food, securing phone credit, covering transport costs, and paying water bills have become severe struggles. He also supports his wife, child, and other relatives, responsibilities he says are increasingly difficult to manage.
One morning, this hardship became starkly apparent.
Bondele recounted running out of fuel on his motorcycle while heading to work. Lacking money for refueling, he left the bike with neighbors and walked the remaining 13 kilometers (8 miles) to the hospital; by the time he arrived, his shoes were worn through.
Despite the unpaid wages and hardship, Bondele and hundreds of workers continue attending the hospital seven days a week. He stated his work is too vital to abandon.
“I hope their conscience tells them that I deserve to be paid,” Bondele said, addressing officials.
Strikes and Protests Cause Disruptions
Bondele was among hundreds of Ebola response workers in Bunia who recently staged strikes and protests over unpaid wages, occasionally leaving health facilities and disrupting parts of the response as the outbreak continued its spread.
“We realized they (the authorities) weren’t doing anything, and that’s when we went on strike,” he said.
They warned that unpaid wages were damaging morale and impacting patient care. In a statement, staff at one treatment center declared they would remain on strike until "concrete solutions" were found to resolve months of outstanding wages and bonuses.
Dr. Adelard Lufungula, operations manager for the government’s Ebola response, stated last month that the payment issue was being addressed, with workers now receiving payments via mobile money instead of cash, and the backlog expected to clear soon.
For Bondele, these explanations have done little to alleviate uncertainty.
“I wonder whether it is injustice or whether there simply isn’t enough money,” he said.
Insecurity and Community Mistrust Complicate Response
The strikes occur while the Ebola response is already contending with armed conflict, widespread misinformation, and deep public mistrust—all factors hindering health workers' ability to contain the outbreak.
“It is very difficult to get people to understand,” Bondele commented. “Sometimes while raising awareness I can be threatened or beaten, and I have to run away.”
He added that some communities continue to resist basic prevention measures like regular handwashing.
Restrictions on traditional burials, which prevent families from touching the highly contagious bodies of relatives, have generated resentment in certain communities. Rumors circulate claiming the virus is a hoax, that health workers profit from the outbreak, or that hospitals withhold life-saving treatments.
This misinformation has repeatedly escalated into violence. Angry crowds have set fire to Ebola treatment centers, stormed hospitals to retrieve family members' bodies, and attacked teams conducting safe burials. Health officials report that this mistrust has also complicated contact tracing and early treatment, especially in remote areas affected by rebel violence.
As visitors queue for temperature checks and disinfectant is sprayed to curb the virus, Bondele continues the work he says he undertook out of passion.
“Working this job takes a lot of courage,” he said. “But today, I am discouraged.”
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