OUTBREAK: Ebola
Sudan Virus Disease Outbreak in Uganda - 2025
Disease
We bring together grant information on Ebola.
Research Categories
Charts showing Ebola grants assigned to twelve research categories with respective subcategories.
Clinical Research
Explore how clinical research funding is allocated across various trial phases and diseases to support clinical trial activities.
Geographical Distribution
Charts showing the location of funding organisations and where funding flows to support Ebola research activities.
Annual Trends
Charts for trends in research funding in Ebola and associated research categories.
Background
Sudan Virus Disease (SVD) is a highly infectious, potentially lethal zoonotic disease caused by Sudan Virus (SUDV). It belongs to the same viral family as Ebola Virus Disease (EVD): the Filoviridae family. SUDV was first discovered in 1976 after two almost simultaneous outbreaks occurred in South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), resulting in over 500 cases. Since then, and as of 30 January 2025, there have been nine SVD outbreaks in South Sudan and Uganda. SVD outbreaks have had a case fatality ratio ranging from 41% to 70%, and healthcare workers are especially at risk. The animal reservoir for orthoebolaviruses is yet to be confirmed however, fruit bats are believed to be the natural hosts for EVD. Ebola viruses have affected non-human primates, but the source of infection remains unknown.
Ebola is transmitted to humans through close contact with the blood and bodily fluids of infected animals. Human-to-human transmission occurs through direct contact with the blood and bodily fluids of an infected, symptomatic human or objects they may have contaminated. There is also evidence that sexual transmission can occur after recovery while the virus is present in the blood. Ebola causes a severe disease with complications, including multi-system organ failure, haemorrhage, and shock.
There are licensed vaccines (rVSV-ZEBOV and Ad26.ZEBOV/MVA-BN-Filo) and therapeutics (Inmazeb and Ebanga) available for EVD. However, there are no licensed vaccines or therapeutics against SVD. It is unclear whether EVD vaccines provide cross-protection against SVD.
Current Outbreak
On 30 January 2025, Uganda confirmed one case of SVD in a nurse who died from the illness in the capital city, Kampala. As of 5 March 2025, there were 12 confirmed cases, two probable cases, and four deaths (two probable, two confirmed) in six Ugandan districts (CFR: 29%). Deaths occurred in the presumed index case, a 4-year-old child, their mother, and her newborn. Eight surviving confirmed cases were discharged from hospital on 18 February. There remain two confirmed cases receiving treatment as of 5 March.
For more information about confirmed Ebola in Uganda, click here.
Key public health and research updates
March 2025:
- Filoviridae CORC meeting held on the update of the WHO-AFIRM Roadmap.
- The WHO publishes its third Disease Outbreak News on Sudan virus disease in Uganda, providing additional information on new cases identified and their response.
- The WHO has released $3.4 million so far from the Contingency Fund for Emergencies to support Uganda’s response.
February 2025:
- On 18 February, all remaining SVD cases tested negative for SUDV (two negative tests 72 hours apart) and were discharged from hospital.
- A WHO-led ring vaccination trial using IAVI’s rVSV-based SUDV vaccine candidate has begun, and the first participants have been vaccinated as of 3 February 2025.
January 2025:
- The WHO has allocated $1 million from its Contingency Fund for Emergencies to support Uganda in its response in addition to deploying public health experts.
- Uganda confirms a positive Ebola case caused by the Sudan Virus in Kampala.
- The DRC reports 12 suspected Ebola cases and eight deaths in the Equateur province. Samples have been sent for confirmation.
February 2024:
- The WHO hosts a workshop in Uganda on ‘building research readiness for a future filovirus outbreak’.
October 2022:
- The GloPID-R team shared a brief on Sudan Virus Disease in Uganda with information on existing research identified in the WHO ICTRP and World RePORT databases.
September 2022:
- Uganda declared a Sudan Virus outbreak.
June 2022:
- The WHO published a Strategic Agenda for Filovirus Research and Monitoring (2021-2031) (WHO-AFIRM).
January 2019:
- The WHO R&D Blueprint team published a Research and Development Roadmap on Ebola and Marburg.
Outbreak-specific research priorities
The WHO R&D Blueprint team published a Roadmap outlining research priorities for Ebola/Marburg in 2019. A more updated WHO-Strategic Agenda for Filovirus Research and Monitoring (WHO-AFIRM)(2021-2031) was published in 2021. This outlines strategic goals and milestones for Filovirus research under three pillars: Anticipation (to prevent and control outbreaks), Reinforcement (to develop and evaluate vaccines), and Cure (to develop post-exposure therapies).
Relevant Links
- A WHO-Strategic Research Agenda for Filovirus. Research and Monitoring (WHO AFIRM). WHO-AFRIM Strategy Roadmap 2021-2031.
- Ebola/Marburg Research and Development (R&D) Roadmap. January 2019 – Advanced draft.
Pandemic PACT data
See below our data visualisations for Ebola research funding.
Global annual funding for research on diseases with a pandemic potential
Total number of grants and US dollars committed for each disease
No data available due to applied filters.
Please note: Grants may fall under more than one disease. Funding amounts are included only when they have been published by the funder and are included within the year of the grant award start date.
Global Distribution of Grants by Research Area
The chart shows the total amount of funding allocated for different research areas for all diseases. Use filters on the left for advanced filtering depending on your interests. Use the 'View sub-categories' buttons to explore the sub-categories.
Number of Grants
Known Financial Commitments (USD)
4650
$2.71B
446
$285.02M
2235
$1.34B
3420
$2.54B
1350
$1.02B
No data available due to applied filters.
Please note: Grants may fall under more than one research category, and funding amounts are included only when they have been published by the funder.
Distribution of Clinical Research Grants by Clinical Trial Phase
The chart shows the number of grants awarded and the total funding allocated for clinical research across all diseases, categorized by trial intervention focus. Hover over each stacked bar to see a detailed breakdown by focus. Use the ‘View Categories’ button to explore clinical trial phases in more detail by intervention focus.
Number of grants
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
Known Financial Commitments (USD)
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
$0.00
Note that some clinical research may fall under multiple categories; although, these overlaps are not explicitly shown. For diagnostic trials, preclinical studies are not included in the data presented.
Global Map of Geographical Distribution of Funding Organisations OR Research Locations
The information on the research location was collected where available from the grant application, and can be different to the location of research institution. Click on a country to see country-specific grant information (including joint-funded grants).
Countries
WHO Regions
No data available due to applied filters.
Please note: Funding amounts are included only when they have been published by the funder. Some research projects are undertaken in multiple locations (countries). Some are funded by multiple funders, the breakdown of joint-funded projects can be found when selecting a country and 'show joint-funded countries'. Where research location is not explicitly specified the default used is the location of the research institution receiving the funds.
Regional Distribution of Funding by Research Areas
Each research category is shown in a different colour
No data available due to applied filters.
Please note: Grants may fall under more than one research category, and funding amounts are included only when they have been published by the funder.
Regional Flow of Research Grants
The chart illustrates the flow of research grants by region, tracing it from funder to research institution and ultimately to the location where the research is conducted.
If the full chart is not visible, please scroll horizontally to view.
Total Number of Grants
US Dollars Committed
No data available due to applied filters.
Please note: Funding amounts are included only when they have been published by the funder. Some research projects are undertaken in multiple locations (countries). Where research location is not explicitly specified the default used is the location of the research institution receiving the funds.
Annual Trends in New Global Grants for Research Areas
The chart shows the total amount of funding allocated to different research areas by calendar year of award start date.
No data available due to applied filters.
Please note: Grants may fall under more than one research category. Funding amounts are included only when they have been published by the funder and are included within the year of the grant award start date.