Uganda will quarantine citizens returning from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) for 21 days if they have a history of travel to the neighbouring country, as authorities tighten precautions against Ebola.
Health Minister Chris Baryomunsi announced the measure on Sunday, despite Uganda declaring itself Ebola-free in July following the end of its latest outbreak.
Concerns have resurfaced after two people who recently travelled through Uganda later tested positive for Ebola in Kenya and Nigeria.
Nigeria is investigating a confirmed case involving the 42-year-old wife of a Swiss diplomat, who travelled from Uganda through Addis Ababa to Abuja on October 3.
Nigeria’s Centre for Disease Control said the woman was in isolation and had shown significant improvement, while 53 contacts had been traced.
Ugandan officials are working with Nigerian authorities and international partners to review genomic sequencing, travel records and the movements and interactions of people linked to the case.
Swiss authorities have suggested the woman contracted the virus in Uganda. However, Baryomunsi disputed the claim, saying Switzerland was “speaking prematurely”.
He said the woman’s relatives from Uganda’s West Nile region had visited her in Kansanga, a suburb of Kampala, and that the relatives had previously travelled to the DRC.
“What evidence do they have that she never travelled there?” he said. “We should speak science, not politics.”
Kenya And Nigeria Cases Linked To Travel Through Uganda
Kenya’s first Ebola patient had travelled from the DRC to Uganda before flying from Entebbe International Airport to Nairobi on October 3. The patient died two days later.
Both the Kenyan and Nigerian cases passed through Entebbe airport on the same day. However, Uganda’s Health Ministry Permanent Secretary Diana Atwine said a review of airport CCTV footage found no physical interaction between the two individuals.
Baryomunsi said all 60 contacts linked to the Kenyan case had completed their 21-day monitoring period and been discharged.
Authorities have also stepped up traveller screening at Entebbe International Airport and all land border crossings.
“All travellers intending to enter Uganda by air, land or water must complete the passenger locator form,” Baryomunsi said.
Genomic analysis of Nigeria’s confirmed case found the virus was closely related to the strain detected in Kenya’s first case. However, Nigerian authorities said there was no evidence that the Kenyan patient had travelled to Nigeria or had a direct connection to the Nigerian case.
Uganda shares a border with the DRC, where the latest outbreak began, and has previously experienced Ebola outbreaks.
Health Workers Attacked While Responding To Ebola Alert
Separately, World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said a nurse had been killed and another health worker seriously injured in an attack while responding to an Ebola alert in Bafwasende, a town in northern DRC.
The attack reportedly occurred on Saturday.
“Everyone working to protect communities from this deadly disease must be able to work in dignity and safety,” Tedros wrote on X on Sunday.
