Uganda stays Ebola-free after brief Kampala transit of man who died in Kenya

Kampala — Uganda remains free of Ebola despite a Kenyan man who briefly passed through Kampala later dying of the virus in Nairobi, the Ministry of Health said on Tuesday.

Prof. Charles Olaro, Director General of Health Services, issued a press release confirming that screening teams recorded a normal temperature when the traveller left Entebbe. The man, a Kenyan citizen who had lived in the Democratic Republic of Congo for seven years, spent less than 24 hours in Uganda after travelling by road from the DRC. He boarded Jambo Jet flight 8523 and arrived in Nairobi at about 1:10 pm on Saturday, 3 October 2026. Kenyan authorities confirmed he tested positive for the Bundibugyo strain and died late Monday night.

The ministry expressed solidarity with Kenya and said it is intensifying cross-border surveillance, information sharing and rapid detection measures. Spokesperson Allan Ssempebwa Kyobe told reporters that Uganda’s public health teams remain in control and that investigations into the traveller’s movements are continuing. No local cases linked to the transit have been confirmed.

Kenya’s Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale said the patient had fallen ill about a month earlier and received treatment at several facilities in the DRC before the journey. Kenyan teams have identified 28 contacts, including family members and health workers, and are tracing 23 passengers and four crew members from the Entebbe flight. Kenya has screened more than 650,000 travellers since the regional alert began and reported only this single positive test.

Uganda declared its own 2026 Bundibugyo outbreak over on 28 July after the last confirmed patient was discharged on 16 June. That outbreak produced 20 cases, mostly imported from the DRC, including four Ugandan health workers and one driver. Eighteen people recovered and two died. The World Health Organization later certified the end of transmission.

The larger outbreak in the DRC, declared in mid-May, has recorded more than 8,000 confirmed cases and over 4,000 deaths, making it one of the deadliest on record. No licensed vaccine or specific treatment exists for the Bundibugyo strain, so isolation, contact tracing and infection prevention remain the main tools.

The ministry thanked health workers, partners and security agencies and urged the public to stay calm, follow official updates and maintain recommended precautions. Alerts can be sent to the ministry hotline on 0800-100-066, by SMS to 6767, or via U-Report on 8500.

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