Monitoring the Ebola Situation in East Africa
Written by Evan Cauble Johnson
Like many organizations working in East Africa, we at Street Business School are closely monitoring the developing Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), along Uganda’s western border.
Photo from a Street Business School workshop held during the COVID-19 pandemic following health and safety protocols.
At this stage, Uganda has reported only a small number of confirmed cases, both connected to recent travel from the DRC. Even so, public health experts are taking the situation seriously because of concerns that the outbreak may have spread for weeks before international monitoring systems fully detected it. The outbreak in the DRC has already reached hundreds of cases, and Ebola remains a dangerous virus with historically high mortality rates.
The good news is that both the DRC and Uganda have extensive experience responding quickly and effectively to infectious disease outbreaks. Government agencies, health officials, and local communities are already implementing preventative measures including sanitation guidance, mask use, and social distancing where appropriate.
At Street Business School, the safety of our team and participants comes first. Out of caution, we have temporarily shifted our Uganda-based staff to remote work for the next month while we continue assessing developments. This is especially important because some of our current programs in Kampala serve women from Congolese refugee communities, who may face increased vulnerability. We want to avoid gathering groups of program participants together during a period when the true scale of the outbreak is still unknown.
While moments like this can feel unsettling, they also remind us of the strength of local leadership and community networks. Across the DRC and Uganda, organizations, health workers, and everyday citizens are responding with care, responsibility, and resilience.
We remain hopeful, attentive, and committed to supporting the communities we serve while prioritizing the health and wellbeing of our staff, participants, and partners.
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