Uganda on alert after Democratic Republic of Congo reports Ebola case

On Wednesday, Uganda Health Ministry has informed that the country is on alert after the Ebola case was reported in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Health Minister Jane Ruth Aceng told reporters that they have heightened their surveillance on the border with the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), reported Xinhua. The minister further informed that they have increased the surveillance after a case of Ebola was reported in Congo on 6 October.

Jane Ruth Aceng told reporters that the authorities in the Democratic Republic of Congo were tracking 100 contacts that came in contact with the confirmed Ebola case. The Uganda Health Minister underscored that they have ramped up their surveillance on the borders, focusing on the people arriving from DRC to Uganda. As per the Xinhua report, Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo share borders, with people living on borders crossing without any restrictions. As the Ebola has resurfaced in Congo, the country has decided to increase their surveillance on the border with Congo. 

Ebola case reported in Democratic Republic of Congo

In the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), a new Ebola case was confirmed in North Kivu province just five months after the epidemic was declared over on May 3, 2021. The Goma branch of the National Institute of Biomedical Research (INRB) had confirmed Ebola in samples taken from a two-year-old child. The child succumbed to the disease after suffering from Ebola-like symptoms on 6 October, the WHO said in a statement. After the new case of Ebola was reported in North Kivu, the health authorities have started vaccination against the disease in the province, WHO said in a statement. 

Matshidiso Moeti, World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Director for Africa, in the statement, informed that the organisation is supporting the health authorities in the country to investigate the new case of Ebola. Moeti in the statement said, "WHO is supporting health authorities to investigate the new Ebola case." Moeti added, "North Kivu has been battered by Ebola outbreaks during the past few years, but this has built up local expertise and community awareness, paving the way for a fast-moving response." According to the World Health Organisation, between 2018 to 2020. The Ebola outbreak in Congo is the second-largest in the world.

(Image: Twitter/@JaneRuth_Aceng)