Ebola now under control - Minister Aceng

Minister of Health Jane Ruth Aceng stated that the Ebola outbreak is now under control and that the ministry has begun to see a decrease in the number of cases.

Aceng stated that the ministry has not received any new Ebola cases in more than ten days.

“We are seeing a downward trend in the number of cases. Mubende had made 18 days without any case until we got a case among the health workers and since that case upto now, there is no new case in Mubende,” Aceng said.

Aceng told journalists on Wednesday that Mubende, which was initially one of the epicenters of the outbreak, will now be removed from the follow-up list if there is no new case for 42 days.

"If we can consistently provide 21 days, followed by another 21 days, Mubende will be taken from the follow-up list, which will be a gain for Uganda," she continued.

The minister also told journalists that the health ministry is not reporting new cases in Kasanda, claiming that the district had been without a new case for nearly ten days.

On Kampala and Masaka

When asked about the situation in Kampala and other districts such as Masaka, Minister Aceng stated that there are no new cases of Ebola in these areas as well.

The health ministry claimed earlier this week in a press release that the Kampala Metropolitan Area has not documented any Ebola cases beyond those under quarantine, having had contacts to confirmed cases recorded in Kampala.

Aceng stated that isolating contacts before they displayed any symptoms worked effectively for Kampala.

“We are not seeing cases in Kampala, neither are we seeing cases in Masaka and Jinja,” she confirmed.

President Museveni also assured the country last week that Uganda's efforts to combat Ebola had begun to bear fruit.

Since the Ebola epidemic in September, a total of 132 persons have been proven positive for the virus sickness, with 61 recovering and 53 dying.