Rwanda has officially declared the end of the Marburg virus outbreak, with no new cases reported for almost two weeks, according to Health Minister Sabin Nsanzimana. The announcement comes after a rigorous vaccination campaign was launched in October to curb the spread of the deadly disease, which first emerged in the country in late September.
In a press briefing with the Africa CDC, Nsanzimana confirmed the country had seen significant progress, with the last reported death occurring over a month ago. “It has been nearly two weeks without any new cases and a month since the last death related to Marburg,” the minister stated. He also announced that all patients who were being treated for the virus have now been discharged from hospitals.
The outbreak, which is linked to fruit bats and belongs to the same virus family as Ebola, was initially met with concern due to its high fatality rate. However, the situation in Rwanda has been far less severe, with a mortality rate of just under 23%, resulting in 15 deaths from 66 confirmed cases.
Health authorities, including the Africa CDC, had previously reassured the public that the virus was under control, with minimal risk of it spreading beyond Rwanda’s borders. Despite the positive outcome, the government remains cautious, continuing to monitor fruit bat populations for signs of the virus.
The swift response and containment of the outbreak have been hailed as a success for Rwanda’s public health efforts, but authorities remain vigilant, with ongoing surveillance to prevent future occurrences of the disease.
