Kenya Discharges Last Ebola Patient as 42-Day Countdown to Ebola-Free Status Begins

admin · November 12, 2026 · 4 min read

A health worker in protective gear outside a hospital in Nairobi, Kenya, as the country begins a 42-day countdown to being declared Ebola-free.

Kenya has discharged its last Ebola patient, Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale announced on Wednesday, November 11, starting a 42-day countdown that could see the country declared Ebola-free on December 23, 2026, if no new case is recorded.

“He has been discharged healthy and free of the virus,” Duale said at Afya House in Nairobi. The last 11 contacts under monitoring also returned home the same day, having completed their follow-up in good health. For the first time since Kenya confirmed its first case 37 days earlier, the country now has no Ebola patient in treatment and no contacts in quarantine.

A 42-day countdown begins today

Day one of the countdown falls on Thursday, November 12. The 42-day period is twice the longest incubation period of the virus — 21 days — and under World Health Organization guidance, an outbreak can be declared over once that span passes without a new confirmed case.

“Forty-two days is twice the longest incubation period of the virus. If no new case is recorded in that period, Kenya will be declared free of Ebola on 23 December 2026,” Duale said.

The WHO congratulated Kenya on the milestone, wishing the survivor “continued recovery, good health and successful reintegration into their community,” said Dr Abdourahmane Diallo of the WHO Regional Office for Africa.

Nine cases, seven recoveries, two deaths

Kenya confirmed its first case of Bundibugyo virus disease on October 6, 2026, in a Kenyan who had travelled home from the Democratic Republic of the Congo through Uganda. Contact tracers quickly found all 135 people who had been in close contact with him, in Kenya and abroad, and placed them in quarantine with daily health checks.

Eight more people tested positive in the days that followed — four family members of the first patient and four health workers who had cared for him before Ebola was suspected. Every one of them was already in quarantine when they fell ill, Duale said, so the virus never spread into the wider community.

The last case was confirmed on October 19, and no new infection has been recorded since. On November 3, five patients were discharged — “the first Kenyans ever to recover from this disease,” Duale said. A sixth went home on November 6, and with the final discharge, seven patients have now recovered. Two people died.

Why this matters

Kenya’s rapid containment stands in sharp contrast to the outbreak still raging across the border. Ebola remains active in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, with nearly 11,000 confirmed cases and more than 5,000 deaths in the deadliest outbreak in the country’s history.

WHO officials praised Kenya’s openness throughout the response. “I commend the Government of Kenya for its transparency, timely reporting, strong coordination mechanisms and commitment to protecting the health and well-being of its people,” Diallo said.

The work is not over

Health authorities stressed that the countdown does not mean the response has ended. “Let me be clear. The countdown is not the end of our response,” Duale said. Rapid response teams will stay on alert in every county, every alert will be investigated, and survivors will receive follow-up care.

The WHO advises against travel or trade restrictions on countries affected by Ebola, and Duale said Kenya remains open for business, tourism, trade and travel, with no restrictions on movement or public gatherings.

Frequently asked questions

When will Kenya be declared Ebola-free?

If no new case is recorded during the 42-day countdown that began on November 12, Kenya is expected to be declared free of Ebola on December 23, 2026.

How many Ebola cases did Kenya record?

Nine confirmed cases of Bundibugyo virus disease: seven patients recovered and two died. All 135 traced contacts completed monitoring, and the virus never spread into the wider community.

What is Bundibugyo virus disease?

Bundibugyo virus is one of the viruses that cause Ebola virus disease. Kenya’s first case was a traveller who returned from the Democratic Republic of the Congo through Uganda in early October.

Kenya now faces 42 days of watchful waiting. “Fellow Kenyans, we are not yet at the finish line, but we can see it at a distance,” Duale said. “Let us walk these last 42 days together with the same discipline and unity that brought us here until Kenya is declared Ebola-free.”