Africa CDC urges US to lift Ebola travel restrictions on Uganda

Africa's top public health agency said on Tuesday that it does not support travel bans in response to the continent's worsening Ebola outbreak and urged the United States to lift restrictions imposed on Uganda.

The appeal came days after Washington tightened travel restrictions linked to the current Ebola outbreak, which originated in the Democratic Republic of Congo, on travellers from the DRC, Uganda and South Sudan.

Speaking at an African Union health summit in Accra, Ghana, Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention director-general Jean Kaseya said the agency was not advising travel bans.

Public health experts have argued during previous Ebola outbreaks that travel bans can hinder the movement of medical supplies and personnel and disrupt trade. They have instead called for disease surveillance and isolation of cases.

Kaseya said he had written to US health secretary Robert F. Kennedy requesting that restrictions on Uganda be lifted specifically. He said Uganda had gone three weeks without a new Ebola case and had discharged its last patient on July 16.

Kaseya said there was no reason for the United States to keep the restriction on Uganda, and said countries should not be punished for being transparent about disease outbreaks.

At the same time, Kaseya warned that the outbreak was escalating rapidly. He said that if it was not stopped, it could become the worst outbreak documented.

The World Health Organization says there have been 2,344 confirmed Ebola cases in the DRC, including 930 deaths, since the outbreak was declared in mid-May. Uganda has reported 20 cases and two deaths, mostly involving Congolese citizens who crossed the border.

Africa CDC estimates that $1.4 billion is needed to contain the outbreak, nearly three times the $518 million projected last month. Kaseya said African countries had pledged about $110 million so far and warned that the outbreak would not be stopped without the needed funding.

Kaseya also said health authorities should be monitoring nearly 97,000 contacts linked to confirmed Ebola cases, but were currently following only about 8,500 people.

His remarks came as ministers from across Africa met during the African Union summit. Leaders are expected to adopt a roadmap on Wednesday aimed at strengthening health systems, improving epidemic preparedness and accelerating progress towards ending AIDS by 2030.