Uganda Sets 21-Day Quarantine for Citizens Returning from DR Congo
Uganda's health ministry says returning citizens will quarantine 21 days at their own cost as Ebola restrictions tighten; contacts of Kenya's patient were discharged.
The story in focus
BBC News reports Uganda's health ministry announced a 21-day quarantine, at returnees' own cost, for Ugandans arriving from DR Congo, barred transit by travellers who had been there and intensified screening at Entebbe airport and land crossings.
- Returning Ugandans must undergo 21 days of quarantine at their own cost, the health ministry said.
- Travellers who had been to DR Congo will not be allowed to transit through Uganda.
- Screening was intensified at Entebbe International Airport and all land border crossings.
- The ministry said the 60 contacts of the Kenyan Ebola patient had all been discharged.
Restrictions and screening
Uganda's health ministry announced on Sunday that Ugandans returning from the Democratic Republic of Congo would be quarantined for 21 days at their own cost, BBC News reported. Travellers who had been to DR Congo would not be permitted to transit through Uganda.
The ministry said it had intensified traveller screening at Entebbe International Airport and all land border crossings, supported by screening at designated road checkpoints. Health Minister Chris Baryomunsi told the BBC that only essential travellers from DR Congo would be admitted, subject to intense public health measures.
Contacts discharged and cases abroad
The ministry said the 60 people monitored after contact with the Kenyan Ebola patient had all been discharged. Uganda has repeatedly stressed that no cases have been reported within its borders, though two people who passed through Entebbe later tested positive in Kenya and Nigeria.
The Kenyan patient died two days after arriving in Nairobi, and Kenya has since confirmed eight other cases. The health ministry's permanent secretary, Diana Atwine, said CCTV footage showed no physical interaction between the two patients. The ministry said Uganda and Nigeria were working to establish the Nigerian patient's movements and possible routes of exposure.
Outbreak context
More than 4,800 people have died in DR Congo since May in what BBC News describes as the country's deadliest Ebola outbreak, which has spread to several other countries. Uganda recorded 20 Ebola cases and two deaths shortly after the outbreak began, and the World Health Organization declared the country free of the disease in August.
Baryomunsi said the recent cases meant the risk had not ended. The Bundibugyo species behind the outbreak is relatively rare and has no vaccine or specific treatment, though trials are under way, according to the report.
What does Uganda's new quarantine require of citizens returning from DR Congo?
Ugandans returning from DR Congo must undergo 21 days of quarantine at their own cost, the health ministry said. Travellers who had been there cannot transit through Uganda.
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