The Ugandan Executive has issued a message of calm to travelers and tourists planning to visit the country, emphasizing that health authorities are keeping the Ebola outbreak under control. This statement comes after the confirmation of six new infections in the last day and after the World Health Organization (WHO) declared an international emergency due to the numerous cases detected in the northeast of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
The Director General of Ugandan Health Services, Charles Olaro, has stressed that "all known contacts (of Ebola patients) are in quarantine." He also insisted that "Uganda is still safe. You can come to Uganda and return to your country without Ebola," before stating that the current focus will be controlled "soon."
"It is not the first outbreak," he noted, emphasizing that "the key is prevention and infection control." Similarly, he has asked for the public's cooperation: "If you are a contact, we ask you to come to us as soon as possible when you have the first symptoms," as reported by the Ugandan newspaper 'Daily Monitor'.
Authorities officially declared the Ebola outbreak on May 15, following the death of a Congolese citizen in a Kampala hospital. Laboratory tests later confirmed that he was infected with the virus. So far, twelve cases have been verified, with one death and two people who have already recovered.
Olaro's statements come a day after WHO spokesperson Christian Lindmeier specified that nine confirmed cases have been registered in Uganda to date and significantly revised downwards the number of suspected cases in the DRC, which has gone from nearly a thousand to less than 500.
In a press conference, Lindmeier detailed that there are currently 116 suspected cases of Ebola and 321 confirmed cases, with a balance of 48 confirmed deaths and six recovered patients.
The spokesperson explained that, although the number of confirmed cases is cumulative and therefore can only increase, the number of suspected cases is variable. Anyone who goes to a medical center with compatible symptoms is initially classified as a suspected case, until tests determine if they have Ebola or another pathology.
Call to strengthen cross-border cooperation
In parallel, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) has urged governments and their partners to urgently intensify cross-border coordination to curb the spread of the virus. The organization has warned that the closure of border crossings could encourage irregular movements and increase the risk of undetected transmission.
"Viruses do not stop at borders, and neither should our response," stressed the IOM's Deputy Director-General for Operations, Ugochi Daniels, who recalled that "when borders are closed, people tend to continue moving along informal routes where health checks and surveillance are limited."
"The most effective response is coordinated action that keeps mobility visible, safe, and controlled," she added. Along these lines, she warned that border closures reduce the visibility of population movements and hinder efforts to monitor, trace contacts, and detect cases of diseases such as Ebola.