Ebola: Govt suspends music concerts and public celebrations

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The government has suspended music concerts, cultural festivals, public celebrations and other mass gatherings in Kampala and several high-risk districts as Uganda intensifies measures to prevent the spread of Ebola Virus Disease.

The new restrictions were announced by the permanent secretary in the Ministry of Health, Dr Diana Atwine, following resolutions of the National Task Force meeting chaired by Vice President Jessica Alupo amid growing concern over the worsening Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

Under the new directives, music concerts, entertainment shows, political rallies, cultural celebrations, marathons, walkathons, road races and border-related social activities have all been halted with immediate effect in the Kampala Metropolitan Area and districts considered at high risk of Ebola transmission.

“These measures are intended to minimise opportunities for person-to-person contact that may increase the risk of transmission of Ebola infection in the event of exposure to an infected individual,” Atwine said in the circular.

The suspension affects Kampala, Wakiso, Mukono, Mpigi and several border districts, including Arua, Koboko, Kasese, Bundibugyo, Kisoro, Kanungu, Hoima, Kikuube and Kiryandongo, among others.

The Ministry of Health explained that such gatherings increase the risk of Ebola transmission because they involve uncontrolled crowd mixing, prolonged physical interaction, excessive sweating and unnecessary movement of people.

Atwine said non-essential gatherings where effective infection prevention and control measures cannot be guaranteed will not be permitted until further notice.

However, the ministry clarified that structured institutional meetings and official gatherings may continue, provided organisers strictly enforce Ebola prevention measures issued by the Ministry of Health.

The permitted meetings must have organised seating arrangements with adequate spacing between participants, proper ventilation, temperature screening at entry points and mandatory handwashing or sanitising facilities.

Organisers have also been directed to avoid overcrowding, discourage handshakes and hugging, routinely disinfect venues and ensure participants do not share personal items such as phones, utensils and drinking containers.

“Strictly avoid physical greetings, including handshakes, hugging, and all other forms of unnecessary direct physical contact, which increase the risk of community transmission,” Atwine directed.

The ministry further ordered all organisers of approved gatherings to designate focal persons responsible for enforcing infection prevention measures throughout events.

Participants attending permitted gatherings have additionally been urged to remain vigilant and immediately report symptoms such as fever, vomiting, diarrhoea, severe headache, weakness or unexplained bleeding to nearby health authorities.

The latest restrictions come as Uganda continues responding to imported Ebola cases linked to the ongoing outbreak in eastern DRC.

Uganda has already introduced several additional measures, including the temporary closure of the Uganda-DRC border, mandatory self-isolation for travellers returning from DRC and intensified screening at border points and airports.

Schools in border districts have also been directed to closely monitor learners returning from DRC by taking and recording their temperatures daily for 21 days, which corresponds with Ebola’s incubation period.

Atwine warned that security agencies and district authorities have been instructed to strictly enforce the new measures, particularly in high-risk districts and border areas.

“Any individual or institution found in violation of these directives shall be subject to appropriate enforcement action in accordance with the National Public Health Act and Regulations,” she warned.

The ministry has meanwhile urged the public to remain calm but vigilant, insisting the restrictions are aimed at preventing further spread of the virus and protecting communities from a wider outbreak.

Uganda has in previous years successfully contained multiple Ebola outbreaks through early detection, contact tracing, isolation and strict public health interventions.

As of May 27, all seven confirmed Ebola cases in Uganda had been reported in Kampala. The cases include a Ugandan driver who transported one of the patients, a Congolese woman who travelled to Uganda seeking medical care, a Congolese health worker who attended to fellow Congolese patients in Uganda, and two Ugandan health workers who were exposed while caring for Ebola patients.

Meanwhile, the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo continues to worsen. As of May 26, Congolese authorities had reported more than 1,000 suspected cases and at least 220 suspected deaths since the outbreak was declared.

Growing fears over the possible regional spread of the virus have also prompted several countries to tighten travel restrictions. Canada announced a temporary 90-day entry ban targeting residents from DR Congo as well as neighbouring Uganda and South Sudan, while the Bahamas introduced quarantine and isolation requirements for travellers arriving from the affected countries.