Subscribe: Gist E-Paper
Uganda’s Ministry of Health has denied having any confirmed active Ebola cases, saying the Nigerian woman diagnosed with the disease in Abuja merely transited through the East African country before developing symptoms in Nigeria.
In a statement issued on Tuesday and signed by the Director-General of Health Services, Charles Olaro, the ministry said the woman had travelled to the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) for business before passing through Uganda in early October.
According to the statement, she showed no symptoms while in Uganda but developed them after arriving in Nigeria.
The ministry stressed that her passage through Uganda did not establish that she contracted the virus there, adding that investigations were ongoing to determine the location of exposure.
“Travel through Uganda does not establish that infection occurred here. The location of exposure remains under investigation,” the statement said.
It added that the Nigerian government had yet to provide detailed information about the patient’s travel itinerary and clinical history to support further investigations and any necessary contact tracing.
The Ugandan government maintained that it had no confirmed active Ebola cases as of the time of the statement.
It also said it had retained limited provisions for humanitarian and diplomatic movements while pledging to strengthen screening and public health controls at points of entry.
The ministry urged residents to remain calm and vigilant, while observing regular hand washing and sanitisation to reduce the risk of infection.
The clarification followed Nigeria’s confirmation of an Ebola case in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
The Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Ali Pate, announced on Tuesday that laboratory tests had confirmed the infection in a woman who recently arrived in Nigeria on an international flight from Uganda.
Pate said the patient had been admitted to a private hospital in the FCT, where she received medical attention for several days before the diagnosis was confirmed.
“She is currently in isolation and receiving medical care,” the minister said.
He added that contact tracing had commenced, with 44 close contacts identified for monitoring as health authorities worked to prevent further transmission.
The differing accounts have heightened the need for cooperation between Nigerian and Ugandan health authorities to establish the source of the infection and identify anyone who may have been exposed to the virus.
