Uganda Ends Ebola Outbreak

The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) and the World Health Organization (WHO) confirmed the end of the Ebola outbreak in Uganda.

This follows 42 consecutive days without a new confirmed case since the country’s last patient, an imported case, was discharged from care on 16 July 2026.

The 42-day countdown is the internationally established benchmark for determining that transmission linked to an Ebola outbreak has ended.

The completion of this period provides an additional safeguard that no chains of transmission associated with the last imported case have been missed.

“Uganda has demonstrated that with decisive action, Ebola outbreaks can be brought under control quickly,” said Dr Tedros Adhanom, WHO Director General, said in a statement wecoming the end of the outbreak in the country.

The East African Nation announced the interruption of local transmission on 28 July after completing 42 days without a new locally acquired case.

Outbreak control measures, including disease surveillance, continued after the last imported patient was discharged on 16 July. The completion of this additional monitoring period confirms that no further transmission has been detected in the country.

“This is a victory for Uganda and an important lesson for our continent,” said Dr Jean Kaseya, Director-General of Africa CDC.

“We must now protect this achievement while accelerating the response in the DRC,” he said, “We will only be secure when transmission is stopped everywhere.”

During the outbreak, Uganda reported 20 confirmed cases of Ebola disease caused by Bundibugyo virus following the declaration of the outbreak on 15 May 2026. Eighteen people recovered and two died.

Meanwhile, reports say cases in neighbouring Democratic Republic of the Congo continue to rise despite progress in contact tracing and testing.

The DRC outbreak has become the second-deadliest Ebola outbreak in history, with more than 2,700 deaths and 5,600 cases reported by Congolese authorities.