Key Considerations: Cross-Border Dynamics Between Uganda and Kenya in the Context of the Outbreak of Ebola, 2022

Abstract

This brief summarises key considerations concerning cross-border dynamics between Uganda and Kenya in the context of the outbreak of Ebola (Sudan Virus Disease, SVD) in Uganda. It is part of a series focusing on at-risk border areas between Uganda and four high priority neighbouring countries: Kenya; Rwanda; Tanzania, and South Sudan. The outbreak began in Mubende District, Uganda on 19 September 2022, approximately 340km from the Kenyan border. At the time of writing (December 2022), the outbreak had spread to eight Ugandan districts, including two in the Kampala metropolitan area. Kampala is a transport hub, with a population over 3.6 million. While the global risk from SVD remains low according to the World Health Organization (WHO), its presence in the Ugandan capital has significantly heightened the risk to regional neighbours. Kenya is categorised as a priority level 1 country, following a case in Jinja on the road between Kampala and the Kenyan border, on 13 November 2022. A total of 23 suspected cases were tested in Kenya up to 1 December 2022, all with negative results. To date, no case of SVD has been imported into the country from Uganda. This brief provides details about cross-border relations between the two states, the political and economic dynamics likely to influence these, and the specific areas and actors most at risk. The brief is based on a rapid review of existing published and grey literature, news reports, previous ethnographic research in Kenya and Uganda, and informal discussions with colleagues from the International Organisation for Migration, UNICEF, UNDP, Save the Children, the Kenyan Red Cross Society, the Kenyan Ministry of Health (MoH) and Ministry of Livestock, Agriculture and Fisheries in Kenya, and the Safe Water and AIDS project in Kisumu. It was requested by the Collective Service, written by Hugh Lamarque (University of Edinburgh) and Hannah Brown (Durham University) and supported by Olivia Tulloch (Anthrologica). It was further reviewed by colleagues from Anthrologica, the Institute of Development Studies, and the Collective Service. This brief is the responsibility of SSHAP.