By Sherif Lawal
Health authorities across Africa are stepping up emergency measures after the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention declared the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo and neighbouring Uganda a Continental Public Health Emergency.
The decision follows growing fears that the virus could spread beyond affected areas amid heavy cross-border movement, insecurity, and fragile healthcare systems. DR Congo has recorded 131 deaths from 513 suspected Ebola cases, while Uganda has confirmed one fatality linked to the outbreak.
Africa CDC said the declaration allows the agency to deploy additional emergency response teams, strengthen surveillance, and mobilise critical resources to contain the disease.
The health body warned that mining activities, weak infection prevention measures, and the proximity of affected regions to Rwanda and South Sudan could accelerate transmission.
Africa CDC Director-General, Jean Kaseya, described the outbreak as one of the continent’s most difficult health emergencies, citing insecurity, population movement, and limited medical countermeasures against the Bundibugyo strain of the Ebola virus.
