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HealthUganda slams 'unfair' Ebola travel restrictions imposed by US, Canada, UAE
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Uganda has criticized air travel restrictions imposed by the United States, Canada, and the United Arab Emirates over an Ebola outbreak that originated in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The restrictions include entry bans on travelers from Uganda, DRC, and South Sudan. Uganda's Health Ministry Permanent Secretary Diana Atwine stated that while vigilance is appreciated, blanket restrictions unfairly undermine confidence in countries that report outbreaks transparently. Uganda has reported only 19 confirmed cases and 2 deaths, mostly among Congolese nationals who crossed the border. In contrast, the DRC outbreak has seen 676 cases and 136 deaths since mid-May. The World Health Organization praised Uganda's response but warned the outbreak is spreading to new areas in the DRC. The Bundibugyo strain of Ebola, responsible for the outbreak, has no approved vaccine or specific treatment.
Source report
‘While we appreciate the need for vigilance, blanket restrictions undermine confidence in countries that report outbreaks openly,’ said the Permanent Secretary of Uganda Health Ministry
Published - June 13, 2026 01:33 pm IST — Kampala
AFP
Uganda has criticized air travel restrictions imposed by countries including the United States over an Ebola outbreak that has spilled over from the neighbouring Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), calling them "unfair."
The east African country's response to the latest outbreak of the deadly haemorrhagic fever has been broadly praised by public health officials, with only two deaths out of 19 confirmed cases since the alarm was sounded in the DRC in mid-May.
Almost all of those cases were Congolese nationals who had crossed the border from their home country, where more than 676 cases have been confirmed and 136 people have died since May 15.
"Today, the Ugandan Health Ministry, together with the Civil Aviation Authority, Ambassadors, and airline operators serving Uganda, discussed the unfair travel restrictions imposed on Uganda due to the current Ebola situation," Diana Atwine, Permanent Secretary for the Health Ministry, said on X on Friday (June 12, 2026).
"While we appreciate the need for vigilance, blanket restrictions undermine confidence in countries that report outbreaks openly, and are not commensurate with the actual risk," she said.
Besides the United States, Canada and the United Arab Emirates are among the countries to have imposed entry bans on travellers from Uganda, the DRC and neighbouring South Sudan as a result of the outbreak.
While the World Health Organization's chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus praised Kampala's strategy on a visit to Uganda on Monday (June 8, 2026), the United Nations health agency warned on Friday (June 12, 2026) that the outbreak was spreading to new areas in the neighbouring DRC.
No vaccine nor specific treatment exists for the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola responsible for the latest outbreak, the 17th to hit the vast central African country. Spread by close contact and infected bodily fluids, the disease has killed more than 15,000 people in Africa over the past 50 years.
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