Uganda Declared Ebola-Free after 42-Day Monitoring Period

Uganda has declared the end of the 2026 Ebola outbreak after completing the required 42-day monitoring period without detecting any new locally transmitted infections.

Health Minister Dr Chris Baryomunsi announced the development during a media briefing at the Uganda Media Centre on July 28, 2026, saying the country is now free of Ebola after months of surveillance and response efforts.

"The Ministry of Health is pleased to announce that Uganda has officially declared the end of the 2026 Ebola disease outbreak. So today, as we speak now, Uganda is Ebola-free," Baryomunsi said.

The mandatory 42-day countdown began on June 16, 2026, after the discharge of the last Ugandan patient who had contracted the virus locally. Under World Health Organization guidelines, a country can declare an outbreak over after completing 42 days without new infections following the recovery or death of the last locally transmitted case.

Although Mulago National Referral Hospital discharged another Ebola patient on July 16, 2026, health officials said the case did not affect the countdown because the patient was a Congolese national whose infection was classified as imported.

Baryomunsi said authorities based the countdown on the discharge of the last Ugandan patient because the Congolese patient entered Uganda while hiding in a cargo truck and had no known contacts in the country.

"I must hasten to add that we are counting from the last Ugandan national who was discharged because the last case that was discharged was a Congolese national who came hiding in a cargo truck. He had no contacts at all," he said.

The minister said investigators traced the source of the outbreak and established links between all confirmed cases. He added that every identified contact completed the required 21-day follow-up period without developing Ebola symptoms.

He credited the successful response to stronger disease surveillance, early diagnosis, digital contact tracing and coordinated treatment of patients. Health teams also maintained nationwide surveillance throughout the outbreak to detect any new infections and stop further spread.

Baryomunsi urged Ugandans to remain alert and continue following public health guidance, saying the country has strengthened its capacity to respond quickly if another outbreak occurs.

The declaration ends months of intensive public health operations following the confirmation of Ebola cases in Uganda earlier this year.