Ebola: Uganda orders 21-day quarantine for citizens returning from DR Congo

Uganda has ordered citizens returning from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) to undergo a 21-day quarantine as authorities intensify measures to prevent further transmission of Ebola amid infections reported in Nigeria and Kenya.

According to a report by Al Jazeera, the Health Minister Chris Baryomunsi announced the measure at a news conference in Kampala, saying the government had strengthened surveillance at Entebbe International Airport and land border crossings.

The Ministry of Health said returning Ugandans with a history of travel to the DRC would bear the cost of their quarantine. Incoming travellers are also required to complete forms containing their contact details to facilitate follow-up by health authorities.

The measures come amid investigations into the source of Nigeria’s first confirmed Ebola case in more than a decade and a possible connection between the Nigerian and Kenyan infections.

Uganda declared its Bundibugyo Ebola outbreak over in July after recording 20 infections and two deaths, according to the country’s Ministry of Health. It maintains that it has no active Ebola infections.

However, the source of Nigeria’s imported case remains under investigation, with conflicting accounts emerging about the infected woman’s movements before she tested positive.

Dispute over Nigeria’s Ebola case

Swiss authorities have said a Ugandan-born woman married to a Swiss diplomat contracted Ebola during a visit to Uganda in September.

Nigeria confirmed her infection on 20 October after she returned to Abuja on 3 October.

The 42-year-old woman developed symptoms days after arriving in the country and initially sought treatment at a private hospital, believing she had malaria, before being admitted to another facility.

PREMIUM TIMES previously reported that the woman had spent about two and a half weeks in Uganda before returning to Nigeria through Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, where she had a two-hour stopover.

At the briefing, Mr Baryomunsi questioned the conclusion that she contracted the virus in Uganda.

He said relatives who had previously visited the DRC had met the woman in a Kampala suburb, raising questions about whether investigators had adequately examined that possible route of exposure.

“We should speak science, not politics,” he said.

Mr Baryomunsi said 60 people identified in Uganda following possible contact with the Kenyan patient had completed 21 days of monitoring and been discharged.

DRC outbreak

The current regional response follows a major Ebola outbreak in the DRC, where infections were first reported in May.

The WHO had recorded 9,704 cases and 4,687 deaths in the country as of 20 October.

The outbreak is caused by the Bundibugyo virus, a species of Ebola virus for which there is no approved vaccine or specific treatment.

Ebola spreads primarily through direct contact with the blood or other bodily fluids of an infected person, or with contaminated objects and surfaces.

The incubation period can last up to 21 days, making the identification and monitoring of contacts important to detecting infections before they lead to further transmission.

The WHO has called for stronger surveillance and cooperation between countries while advising against travel and trade restrictions on affected countries.