Human trials are underway in the UK after scientists there developed a vaccine for the Bundibugyo strain of the Ebola virus.
The disease has claimed more than 700 lives in the Democratic Republic of Congo since the outbreak was declared in mid-May.
Researchers at the University of Oxford started developing the vaccine just two months ago.
The first doses of the experimental vaccine are expected to be given to volunteers in the coming weeks.
Some Congolese health officials have hailed the start of the human trials.
The announcement of the Ebola vaccine comes as cases and deaths continue to rise in the DRC.
The disease recently spread to two new provinces, raising fears of wider transmission across the country and the region.
Scientists at Oxford University developed the Ebola vaccine using the same technology that was employed during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The vaccine was first tested on mice and monkeys.
The UK’s Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency has approved it for human clinical trials.
Researchers are now recruiting 50 adults between the ages of 18 and 55 for the trials.
The volunteers will be monitored for a year to check if the vaccine produces the right kind of immune response.
Here, the DRC health ministry and international partners have stepped up response efforts in Ituri, North Kivu, South Kivu, Tshopo, and Haut Uele provinces.
They are also conducting clinical trials for two drugs aimed at reducing deaths caused by the rare Bundibugyo strain of the Ebola virus. However, they face challenges related to insecurity and community mistrust.
The current Ebola outbreak is the 17th to occur in the DRC since 1976.
-Reporting by Chris Ocamringa in Kinshasa
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