KAMPALA – The Government of Uganda has ordered a temporary closure of the border with the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) in response to the continued escalation of the country’s Ebola outbreak.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!The development was announced by the Ministry of Health’s Permanent Secretary, Dr. Diana Atwine, as she provided the nation with an updated epidemiological assessment of the Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) situation.
The Permanent Secretary confirmed that Uganda’s heightened alert status is driven by the continued deterioration of the Ebola outbreak in the DRC, where active transmission chains persist across multiple provinces.
She remarked that due to the high risk of cross-border spread, Uganda’s National Task Force on Ebola Response, chaired by the Vice President, convened an emergency session and agreed on a series of aggressive, time-sensitive resolutions.
Among the agreed resolutions is the temporary closure of the Uganda-DRC border, allowing only authorized response teams, humanitarian operations, food and cargo transport, and security personnel under strict health screening.
“We are closing our borders not out of fear, but out of prudence. Uganda remains vigilant, not paralyzed. The temporary, controlled closure with the Democratic Republic of Congo is a life-saving shield, allowing only essential humanitarian and cargo movement under strict screening,” PS Dr. Atwine stated.
All returning travelers from the DRC face mandatory 21-day self-isolation, while border district schools must monitor recently returned students daily, and media houses are required to air 30 minutes of daily Ebola education programming.
Dr. Diana Atwine confirmed that Uganda has not recorded any new Ebola case since May 25, 2026, and the confirmed cases stand at seven (7), with one death.
Meanwhile, the total number of contacts linked to the confirmed Ebola cases has increased, with the majority of these contacts being health workers on the front lines of response.
The Ministry of Health has directed all Resident District Commissioners and Resident City Commissioners to strictly enforce every Ebola prevention and control guideline issued by the Ministry and the National Task Force.
Media houses are required to dedicate 30 minutes of prime-time programming daily to public education on Ebola prevention, detection, and reporting, including hand hygiene, safe burial practices, and early symptom reporting.
About the Author
