Africa’s leading public health agency has called on the United States to lift travel restrictions on Uganda, saying the country has successfully contained its Ebola outbreak and should not be penalized for its transparency in reporting cases.
In his address at an African Union health summit in Ghana, Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) Director-General Jean Kaseya said Uganda had gone three weeks without recording a new Ebola infection and discharged its last patient earlier this month.
Kaseya argued that countries that promptly report disease outbreaks should be supported rather than face travel restrictions.
“We should not punish countries that are transparent,” he said, urging Washington to reconsider measures imposed on Uganda.
The United States recently tightened travel restrictions on Uganda, the Democratic Republic of Congo and South Sudan amid concerns over the spread of Ebola across the region.
While opposing travel bans, Kaseya warned that the situation in the Democratic Republic of Congo was deteriorating rapidly, raising concerns about the potential for a wider regional health emergency.
According to Africa CDC, the country has recorded more than 2,300 confirmed Ebola cases and over 900 deaths since May, making it the epicenter of the current outbreak.
The agency estimates that nearly $1.4 billion is needed to contain the epidemic and strengthen response efforts across affected countries.
Kaseya warned that without urgent international financing, enhanced disease surveillance and stronger public health interventions, the outbreak could escalate into the largest Ebola crisis on record.
Kaseya’s appeal comes as African health authorities seek greater international support to contain the virus while avoiding measures they say could undermine transparency and discourage countries from rapidly reporting future outbreaks.
