The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) has appealed to the United States to remove its travel restrictions on Uganda, saying the East African nation has successfully brought its Ebola outbreak under control.

The appeal was made by Africa CDC Director-General Jean Kaseya during the African Union health summit held in Ghana. According to Kaseya, Uganda has recorded no new Ebola infections for three consecutive weeks and discharged its last Ebola patient earlier this month.

He stressed that countries should not face punitive measures for openly reporting disease outbreaks, warning that transparency is essential for effective public health responses.

The United States recently expanded travel restrictions affecting Uganda, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), and South Sudan as Ebola cases spread across parts of the region.

While opposing the use of travel bans, Kaseya expressed concern over the worsening Ebola situation in the Democratic Republic of Congo. He noted that the country has recorded more than 2,300 confirmed Ebola cases and over 900 deaths since May.

Africa CDC also highlighted the urgent financial requirements needed to contain the outbreak across the region. The agency estimates that nearly $1.4 billion is required to effectively respond to the epidemic.

It warned that without immediate international financial support and strengthened disease surveillance systems, the current crisis could escalate into the most severe Ebola outbreak ever recorded.

Source: VON News (Voice of Nigeria)