Uganda has officially declared itself free of Ebola, ten weeks after confirming its first cases and 42 days after discharging its last patient — the waiting period recommended by the World Health Organization to rule out further transmission. The announcement, made by the Ugandan Health Ministry on Tuesday, marks a significant milestone for the East African nation, even as the outbreak rages on across the border in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Uganda confirmed 20 Ebola cases in total, beginning on May 15 — the same day Congo announced its own outbreak. Authorities maintained from the outset that all Ugandan cases were linked to the larger crisis in Congo's remote eastern province of Ituri, which shares a border with Uganda. The initial patients were Congolese nationals who had crossed into Uganda seeking treatment for an unknown illness before Ebola was identified. "Uganda's 2026 Ebola outbreak arose from a fully documented importation event," the Health Ministry said in a statement, adding that all identified contacts had been institutionally quarantined and completed mandatory 21-day follow-up periods "without evidence of further transmission."
The government's swift response is credited with keeping the outbreak contained. President Yoweri Museveni urged citizens to stop shaking hands, postponed a major annual Catholic pilgrimage near Kampala that draws thousands of worshippers from across the region, and suspended all public transportation and flights between Uganda and Congo. Uganda has significant experience managing Ebola, having navigated multiple previous outbreaks. The strain responsible — the Bundibugyo type of Ebola virus — has no approved vaccine or treatment, and the broader outbreak has already been declared a global health emergency.
The situation in Congo remains deeply alarming by contrast. Confirmed cases have surpassed 3,262, with at least 1,437 deaths recorded — making this the fastest-spreading Ebola outbreak on record. Officials say the case count is expected to exceed the previous highest toll recorded in Congo within days, and the outbreak is only around ten weeks old. Only the catastrophic 2014–2016 West Africa outbreak, which produced 28,000 cases and over 11,000 deaths, has a higher overall toll in the disease's history.
Response efforts in Congo are being hampered by serious security concerns, with more than a dozen attacks on health facilities and workers reported in recent weeks, forcing some responders to abandon affected communities. Contact tracing — considered essential to slowing Ebola's spread — has been severely disrupted as a result. With the Ituri province still experiencing active transmission directly on Uganda's doorstep, health authorities have made clear that enhanced surveillance will continue, and that the risk of re-importation remains a pressing concern.