KAMPALA – Buganda Kingdom, together with the Ministry of Health and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), has formalized a partnership to bolster community-level preparedness and scale up efforts to combat the Ebola outbreak.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!The initiative follows a high-level meeting at Bulange Mengo on Tuesday, June 30, 2026, where officials from the three institutions gathered to align their strategies in combating the outbreak.
During the engagement, the Buganda Kingdom launched an Epidemic Response Committee, chaired by Information Minister Israel Kitooke, to coordinate awareness, prevention, and response activities across the Kingdom.
Speaking at the event, the 2nd Deputy Katikkiro, Robert Waggwa Nsibirwa, recalled the Kingdom’s longstanding partnership with the government in tackling public health emergencies, including HIV/AIDS and COVID-19.
He announced that Buganda, with UNDP support, has developed a disaster management handbook to guide communities on calm and effective emergency response.
“Buganda has a proud history of leading public health campaigns alongside the government. The Kingdom played an impactful role in HIV/AIDS and COVID-19 responses, and so now, with UNDP support, a disaster management handbook has been developed to guide communities through emergencies without panic,” said Waggwa Nsibirwa.
Deputy Katikkiro Robert Waggwa further clarified that monkey meat is not consumed in the Kingdom, as monkeys are revered as clan totems, making the practice culturally taboo.
Ministry of Health Commissioner Dr. Richard Kabanda confirmed Uganda has contained the Ebola outbreak through aggressive contact tracing and quarantine of over 820 contacts for 21 days in designated facilities.
He credited robust disease surveillance, skilled health workers, and advanced labs that deliver Ebola results within eight to ten hours, far quicker than the ten days reported in parts of the DRC.
“We have quarantined over 820 contacts for 21 days in designated facilities. Our success stems from strong surveillance, skilled health workers, and advanced labs that return Ebola results within eight to ten hours, far faster than the ten days reported in parts of the DRC,” said Dr. Kabanda.
Cultural leaders pledged full commitment to controlling the epidemic and called for the new disaster management handbook to be translated into more local languages for wider community reach.
They urged the use of Buganda’s extensive structures, including clan leaders, county chiefs, and the Kingdom’s media platforms, to promote awareness and timely reporting of suspected cases.
The leaders warned against exhuming bodies during outbreaks, stressing that Ebola victims remain highly infectious, while also appealing for reduced stigma against survivors and those released from quarantine.
The collaboration leverages Buganda’s grassroots influence alongside Ministry of Health and UNDP expertise to protect communities across the region.
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