The World Health Organization (WHO) has allocated an additional $2 million from the WHO Emergency Response Fund to support Uganda in the Ebola outbreak, which was confirmed on 30 January after a 32-year-old nurse died from the disease. The allocation, intended to strengthen infection monitoring, prevention, and control in hospitals, treatment centres, and research, follows an earlier WHO allocation of $1 million in January 2025, said the WHO Director-General, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. The Ugandan Ministry of Health has reported six new cases of Ebola within the country, bringing the total number of laboratory-confirmed infections to nine, including one death. Seven patients are currently being treated at Mulago National Referral Hospital in Kampala, while one patient is being treated at Mbale Regional Referral Hospital in the eastern part of the country. In light of the outbreak, the Ministry of Health has quarantined 265 contacts and implemented strict follow-up measures.
Uganda has also faced Sudan virus disease (SVD), with the last outbreak reported in 2022. In total, eight SVD outbreaks have been reported, five of which occurred in Uganda and three in Sudan. SVD is a severe, often fatal disease caused by the Sudan Orthobola virus (Sudanese virus), a virus species belonging to the same genus as the virus that causes Ebola virus disease. Previous outbreaks have shown case fatality rates ranging from 41% to 100%.
