This edition of Uganda’s weekly epidemiological bulletin provides a comprehensive overview of public health events and surveillance activities for Week 32, covering 04th – 10th August 2025.
Published by the Ministry of Health, this bulletin aims to keep all stakeholders informed about suspected disease trends, public health surveillance, and the interventions undertaken for detection, prevention, and response to public health events across community, district, and national levels in Uganda.
During this specific week, the surveillance efforts focused on Indicator and Event Based Surveillance, Sentinel surveillance (including Viral Hemorrhagic Fever, Yellow Fever Virus, and Anthrax), and Points of Entry surveillance.
A critical aspect highlighted was the national weekly surveillance epidemiological reporting rates. For Week 32, only two out of fifteen regions achieved the target of 80% completeness for their weekly epidemiological reports: Bukedi and Karamoja. However, a significant challenge remained as timeliness across all regions stayed below the 80% target.
The bulletin recommends that district biostatisticians collaborate with health workers to identify and address bottlenecks to reporting. Specific districts needing immediate follow-ups and support for reporting by their health teams were marked in red.
Public health incidents requiring close monitoring were also detailed. In Week 32, there were eight maternal deaths, which marked an increase of five deaths from the thirteen reported in the previous Week 31. Similarly, 204 perinatal deaths were recorded, an increase of 59 deaths from the 263 reported in Week 31.
Under Event Based Surveillance (EBS), signals were received from various sources including Open Source Media, SMS 6767, District Rapid Response Teams (DRRT), and Laboratories.
A notable incident detected during Week 32 was one case of Crimean-Congo Hemorrhagic Fever (CCHF) in Kiruhura district, Ankole region. In total, 86 signals were received and triaged, with 42 verified.
Regarding specific disease surveillance:
• Viral Hemorrhagic Fevers (VHF): During WK 32, 100 suspected VHF samples were collected from humans (12 from alive suspects and 88 from cadavers), none of which tested positive. Cumulatively, from 2025 WK 01-32, a total of 3,156 VHF suspected samples were collected, with 13 samples testing positive for VHFs. These positives included 03-CCHF, 03-RVF, and other Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) cases, originating from Kampala City (6), Arua City (1), Namisindwa (2), Mbale (2), Mubende (1), and Kiryandongo (1).
• Yellow Fever Virus (YFV): No yellow fever-suspected samples were submitted to UVRI during 2025 WK 32. However, cumulatively, from WK 01-32 2025, 677 samples were submitted, and 34 tested positive for yellow fever.
• Anthrax: In WK 32, no suspected Anthrax samples were collected from humans, and none tested positive. Cumulatively, from 2025 WK 01-31, 87 anthrax suspected samples were collected and tested from humans, with 34 testing positive.
• Typhoid and Dysentery: Suspected cases of Typhoid and Dysentery in WK 32 remained below the alert threshold, indicating no immediate need for investigation.
Points of Entry (POE) Surveillance played a crucial role, with 286,230 travelers processed during 2025 Week 32, and 91% screened at entry and exit across 26 POEs. The highest traffic was observed at Mpondwe, Entebbe Airport, Malaba, and Elegu.
During TB screening among travelers, 13 presumptive TB patients were identified and tested. Out of these, nine travelers were confirmed with TB, but only one was linked to care. The bulletin highlights the importance of investigating why Sebagoro did not link the eight positive TB patients to care.
Several active Public Health Emergencies (PHEs) in Uganda were being monitored during 2025 WK 32, including:
• CCHF (activated on 11-Aug-25 in Kiruhura, 1 confirmed case).
• Rift Valley Fever (activated on 30-Jul-25 in Mbale and 25-Jul-25 in Kabale, with 1 confirmed case and 1 death in each location).
• Anthrax (active from 29-Jul-25 in Kyegegwa, 10-Dec-24 in Sembabule, and 18-Oct-24 in Kazo).
• Measles (activated on 07-Aug-25 in Mbarara City and 17-Jul-25 in Kumi).
• Mpox (an ongoing emergency since 24-Jul-24, affecting 120 districts with 7,865 confirmed cases).
Additionally, high-priority signals being monitored included Viral Hemorrhagic Fever, Influenza Like Illness, Rift Valley Fever, Goat Plague, suspected Rabies, Chicken Pox, suspected Animal Anthrax, a strange illness (Dinga Dinga), and confirmed Cholera in neighboring countries. The Dinga Dinga illness has been monitored since 26-Aug-23.
