Uganda declares end of Ebola disease outbreak
Uganda on Saturday declared an end to the Ebola disease outbreak less than three months after the first confirmed case was reported in the capital Kampala.
The nation’s health ministry said 42 days had elapsed without a new case since the last confirmed patient was discharged in mid-March.
Uganda declared an Ebola outbreak on January 30. The Ebola strain was identified as the Sudan virus disease (SVD) subtype, a severe, often fatal illness affecting humans and other primates.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), there were 12 confirmed cases and two confirmed deaths as a result of the outbreak.
The World Health Organization (WHO) hailed Uganda’s achievement, saying Uganda’s long-standing experience in managing outbreaks enabled a fast, coordinated, and effective response.
“My congratulations to all of you. Once again, we have shown that with speed and coordination and support under the leadership of the government, we can stop outbreaks in their tracks,” WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesussaid in a video statement.
WHO Acting Regional Director for Africa, Chikwe Ihekweazu echoed those sentiments, saying the strong coordinated response by the government and partners was critical in stopping the outbreak
“This is a powerful demonstration of what determined leadership, strong systems and collective action can accomplish,” Ihekweazu wrote in a post on X.
UNICEF Regional Director for Eastern and Southern Africa Etleva Kadilli also congratulated Uganda on the milestone. She said the systems already in place due to experience from previous Ebola outbreaks, tracing and isolating contacts of cases was vital in ending the outbreak.
“This is nothing but a victory. We must especially applaud health workers, who were on the frontlines working in lockstep with the Ministry of Health to contain this deadly and highly contagious disease,” Kadilli said.
