Paper short abstract:

Ebola outbreaks always trigger massive responses and principles to care for victims and prevent the spread. During the Ebola outbreak of 2018-2020 in Eastern Congo, conflict negatively impacted the response. This paper shows how this was overcome by introducing new methods of accountability.

Paper long abstract:

Outbreaks of the dreaded and deadly disease of Ebola always trigger immediate responses to care for victims and prevent the spreading of the disease. A recurring theme has been how the community's trust or a lack of trust in aid providers affects this response. The issue of trust is even more pertinent in cases of conflict.

This paper focuses on the Ebola outbreak of 2018-2020 in conflict-affected Eastern Congo. Drawing on empirical data from the perceptions of aid providers and affected communities, the paper critically analyzes how the Ebola response in Beni, Democratic Republic of Congo, emerged by zooming in on how accountability and advocacy mechanisms shaped the trust between humanitarian actors and affected communities.

The findings show that conflict negatively impacted the Ebola response in Beni. The poor involvement of representatives of the affected community in advocacy and accountability mechanisms and the use of force in humanitarian actions created mistrust, which resulted in community resistance. To some extent, this was overcome by introducing new accountability methods.