
Mbale, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Uganda has been officially declared Ebola-free. This was at an event held in Mbale city on Saturday, ending an outbreak announced at the end of January when a 32-year-old nurse succumbed to the disease at Mulago National Referral Hospital.
Speaking at this event attended by officials from the World Health Organisation and UNICEF among others, Health Minister Dr Jane Ruth Aceng said the last positive case had been discharged on 14 March 2025 when they started a 42-day countdown.
The outbreak of the Sudan Ebolavirus Disease was the country’s eighth and affected fourteen people, of which four individuals succumbed to the disease. Of the four, two were laboratory confirmed, and theother two were probable deaths.
Cases were recorded in seven districts and three cities, and according to Aceng, the key lesson learnt from the current outbreak is for individuals to avoid movement whenever they suspect having contracted an unclear infection.
The first confirmed case had moved to several districts, including Mbal,e where he visited a traditional healer, Kampala, Mukono and Wakiso districts.
The second confirmed death of a child also went through related circumstances, whereby he was treated at various health facilities in Kampala, including Mulago National Referral Hospital, but health workers did not suspect or think of testing him for Ebola until he died.
This child had lost a mother and a sibling earlier. These cases were contacts of confirmed cases in Fort Portal city, Kyegegwa and Ntoroko districts.
******
URN