Uganda’s Ministry of Health has clarified that the country has no confirmed active Ebola cases following reports of an infection in Nigeria involving a woman who travelled through Uganda.
In a public statement issued on October 20, 2026, Uganda’s Director General of Health Services, Professor Charles Olara, said preliminary information indicated that the Nigerian woman had transited through Uganda in early October without showing symptoms before developing them after arriving in Nigeria.
The ministry stressed that travelling through Uganda did not establish that the infection occurred in the country, adding that the source of exposure remained under investigation.
Ugandan health authorities said Nigeria had yet to provide detailed information about the woman’s travel itinerary and clinical history, which would help guide further investigations and any necessary contact tracing.
The ministry noted that limited provisions had been maintained for humanitarian and diplomatic movement, adding that it would work with relevant agencies to strengthen screening and public health controls at points of entry.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has introduced enhanced screening requirements for U.S. citizens and nationals who have been in Uganda, but not the Democratic Republic of Congo, within 21 days before arriving in the United States.
Such travellers must enter the country through designated airports for additional screening.
The measure is in addition to a CDC order issued under 42 CFR 71.40, which maintains temporary entry restrictions for certain categories of travellers who have been in Uganda.
Ugandans have been urged to remain calm and vigilant, practise regular handwashing and sanitisation, and rely on verified information from official government channels.
The statement comes amid heightened regional concern over Ebola following reports of a case in Nigeria.
The Ugandan government has reiterated that, as of the date of its statement, it had no confirmed active Ebola cases.
According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Uganda reported 21 confirmed and probable Ebola cases and three deaths around the time the Democratic Republic of the Congo declared its outbreak.
The last reported case in Uganda was confirmed on June 21.
