Uganda Border Closure Wrecks Trade, New Ebola Case Dashes Hopes of Reopening
Traders at a key Uganda-DRC border are losing thousands of dollars daily after authorities shut the crossing to contain a resurgent Ebola outbreak — just as a new infection was confirmed weeks after the last case.
The Mpondwe-Lhubiriha border in Kasese District has been closed for several weeks as part of Uganda’s measures to control the Ebola virus [183163]. The closure has halted all cross-border trade between Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo, dealing a heavy blow to local businesses that rely on the route for their livelihoods [183163]. Business owners are now appealing to the government to reopen the crossing, saying they are suffering severe financial losses [183163].
The situation worsened after Uganda confirmed a new Ebola case on 5 June 2026, just three weeks after the country recorded its last infection [180471]. Health authorities have launched contact tracing efforts and alerted the World Health Organization, as the fresh case marks a setback in containing the deadly virus [180471]. Healthcare workers on the frontlines in eastern DRC — where the outbreak has hit Ituri province hardest — say they feel increasingly helpless and fear for their own safety, having never faced an outbreak of this size before [177551]. Many health workers also face rejection from their own communities, who fear they carry the disease home, forcing some to hide their jobs and lose contact with family and neighbors [177576].