The World Health Organization has declared Uganda free of Ebola, marking the end of an outbreak brought under control with striking speed. The declaration followed 42 days without a new case, the standard period, equal to two incubation cycles, used to confirm an outbreak has ended.
Uganda’s toll was light by historical standards, with 20 cases in total and two deaths. The final patient was discharged in mid-July, and the country had already declared the outbreak over before the WHO completed its own verification.
“We had assessed the risk, we knew that we were free from Ebola. However, WHO had to wait because that’s the process,” said Diana Atwine of Uganda’s health ministry, describing the gap between the two declarations.
The country’s long experience with the disease helped keep the numbers low, through fast contact tracing, isolation and treatment protocols honed over previous outbreaks. That expertise prevented the wider spread seen elsewhere in the region.
Across the border, the picture is far grimmer. The Democratic Republic of Congo is battling a separate outbreak that has grown past 5,600 cases and 2,700 deaths, and Uganda has begun helping to establish treatment centres there, underlining how the response, more than the virus, shapes the outcome.
