Rwanda’s Health Minister, Sabin Nsanzimana, on Friday announced that the number of confirmed Marburg virus disease cases in Rwanda has risen to 58, with 13 deaths.

Mr Nsanzimana gave the figure during an online media briefing alongside Jean Kaseya, director-general of the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC).

The minister urged countries not to impose travel bans or movement restrictions in response to the outbreak.

“As of today, we have 58 confirmed cases of Marburg virus disease,” he said. “Unfortunately, we have lost 13 people, and we have also 12 people who have recovered from this disease, which is good news.”

With a case fatality rate of 22 per cent, Mr Nsanzimana emphasised the importance of reducing fatalities and curbing further transmission.

The minister said Rwanda, in collaboration with the Africa CDC and other partners, was working hard to contain the virus through enhanced preventive measures across health facilities.

He said this included providing supportive treatment for patients and enhancing screening protocols, particularly for those travelling outside the country.

“Since the outbreak was declared in Rwanda on September 27, we immediately put together all our efforts to respond and stop this outbreak before it spreads to other places,” Mr Nsanzimana said.

This marks Rwanda’s first outbreak of the Marburg virus disease, which coincides with the country’s ongoing response to a multi-country outbreak of mpox.

Mr Kaseya, on his part, praised Rwanda’s efforts to respond to the outbreak and called on other countries to refrain from implementing travel bans or movement restrictions following the outbreak.

“From what I saw in Rwanda, it’s almost zero-risk for Rwanda to spread the disease out of the country. With the mechanism they put in place in following the contacts, no contact can fly out of Rwanda,” he said.

Following the outbreak announcement, the Africa CDC dispatched a team of experts to Rwanda. The team is working with neighbouring countries, including Burundi, Uganda, Tanzania, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to prevent cross-border transmission and enhance regional surveillance efforts.

Marburg virus disease is a severe and often fatal hemorrhagic illness transmitted from fruit bats to humans.

Human-to-human transmission occurs through contact with an infected person’s bodily fluids or contaminated materials.

There is currently no vaccine or specific treatment for the virus, and supportive care must be administered immediately.

Infection prevention and control protocols similar to those used for Ebola are essential to limiting its spread.

(Xinhua/NAN)