Ebola: Uganda is safe, govt assures travellers
Dr Diana Atwine, the Permanent Secretary of the ministry
The Ministry of Health has said there is a decline in the number of new Ebola infections in the country and that the virus has not spread beyond five districts.
The announcement followed international health alerts and some forms of travel restrictions on passengers from Uganda, which were introduced by the governments of the United States of America and the United Kingdom over the Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) in Uganda.
Dr Diana Atwine, the Permanent Secretary of the ministry, said in a statement that the virus has only been reported in five districts of Mubende, Kassanda, Kyegegwa, Kagadi and Bunyagabu.
“All these districts are more than 100km away from the capital city, Kampala. The rest of the country is free from Ebola and there are no travel restrictions,” Dr Atwine said.
There are 146 districts in Uganda, according to government statistics. The ministry declared the outbreak of Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) on September 20 and since then, a total of 44 have contracted the infection, which has so far killed 10. Since October 2, the country has only reported one new case of infection and one new death. At least seven people have recovered from the virus.
Dr Atwine said the measures they established to fight the outbreak are working. “Government of Uganda and its partners have put measures to control the disease. The number of cases has since declined. All the contacts within Mubende and the neighbouring districts have been identified and isolated and are being followed on a daily basis,” she added.
Around seven Ebola suspects and one of the confirmed cases had reportedly escaped from the isolation unit in Mubende about two weeks ago.
The United States government announced last Thursday that all US-bound passengers, who have been in Uganda in the 21 days prior to their arrival, will be routed to one of the five airports for enhanced screening.
Similarly, the United Kingdom, in an October 6 statement alerted health workers in their country to pay attention to those who are coming from “affected areas.”
