Nairobi (EFE).- The World Health Organization announced on Wednesday the end of the outbreak of the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola in Uganda, while warning that the disease remains out of control in the neighboring Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), where 2,715 deaths have already been recorded.
August 26 marks 42 days since the last confirmed patient in Uganda was discharged. Dr. Marie Belizaire, the WHO’s Director of Emergency Preparedness and Response, noted during a Regional Committee for Africa briefing that this duration represents two full incubation cycles without any new infections, a critical milestone in containing the outbreak.
Speaking at a special press conference during the 76th session of the organization’s Regional Committee for Africa, which is being held until Friday in Addis Ababa, the official added that this guarantees that no residual risk of Ebola remains in the country and marks the end of the outbreak.
The declaration that Uganda is free of the disease comes after the Ugandan government announced on July 28 that the country was “Ebola-free,” following 20 confirmed infections, including 15 cases and two deaths considered imported from the DRC.
According to the latest report from the Congolese Ministry of Health, with data collected until Monday, there are 5,665 confirmed cases, including 2,715 deaths, with a total of 1,245 people recovered and 792 patients hospitalized or in isolation, under a fatality rate that has climbed to 48%.
