Daijiworld Media Network - Kampala
Kampala, Aug 28: The World Health Organisation (WHO) and the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) on Thursday declared the end of the Ebola outbreak in Uganda after 42 consecutive days without a new confirmed case.
The declaration follows the discharge of the country’s last Ebola patient and the completion of a 42-day period without another confirmed infection. The period is equivalent to twice the upper limit of Ebola’s incubation period and is considered a critical milestone to ensure that no chains of transmission linked to the last imported case have gone undetected.
“Uganda has demonstrated that with decisive action, Ebola outbreaks can be brought under control quickly,” WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said, according to a WHO Regional Office for Africa press release.
“With a focus on preparedness, increased surveillance to find potential cases in health facilities and communities, and careful management of points of entry, countries can keep people and goods moving while ensuring people stay safe, or receive care if they are sick,” he added.
The WHO said Uganda, supported by national and international partners, was able to rapidly interrupt local transmission and prevent wider spread through strong government leadership and early, comprehensive measures.
These measures included case detection and confirmation, contact tracing, isolation and clinical care.
“Africa has shown that Ebola can be stopped when leadership acts decisively, communities are trusted and public health systems reach people quickly,” Africa CDC Director-General Jean Kaseya said.
“This is a victory for Uganda and an important lesson for our continent. We must now protect this achievement while accelerating the response in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). We will only be secure when transmission is stopped everywhere,” he added.
Uganda reported 20 confirmed Ebola cases, including two deaths, after the outbreak was declared on May 15.
Of the confirmed cases, 15 were imported from neighbouring DRC, while five were locally acquired among contacts and health workers linked to the imported cases.
Both the WHO and Africa CDC cautioned that while the end of the outbreak in Uganda is an important milestone, Ebola continues to affect parts of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
They noted that close social and economic ties, frequent movement of people and cross-border trade mean neighbouring countries remain at risk of imported Ebola cases.
The two organisations said they would continue supporting Uganda and the DRC through their joint continental preparedness and response plan.
They stressed that ending transmission in the DRC remains a central priority to protect communities across the region.
“WHO will continue working with the government and partners to help preserve these gains and keep communities safe,” said Mohamed Janabi, WHO Regional Director for Africa.