Uganda Races to Deploy Trial Vaccine as Ebola Outbreak Hits Kampala

Ugandan health officials are fast-tracking the deployment of a trial vaccine to combat a recent Ebola outbreak in the capital, Kampala, a senior health expert confirmed on Sunday.

Pontiano Kaleebu, Executive Director of the Uganda Virus Research Institute, revealed that researchers are finalizing protocols for the planned rollout of over 2,000 doses of an experimental vaccine targeting the Sudan strain of Ebola.

“The approval process is being expedited,” Kaleebu stated, emphasizing that the vaccine remains unlicensed.

The World Health Organization (WHO) announced its backing of Uganda’s response, which includes facilitating access to 2,160 trial doses. “Research teams are already in the field, working alongside surveillance units while awaiting regulatory clearance,” the WHO said in a statement.

Both the candidate vaccine and potential treatments are being introduced under clinical trial protocols to assess their efficacy and safety. However, the manufacturer of the vaccine has not yet been disclosed.

Currently, no approved vaccines exist for the Sudan strain of Ebola, which recently claimed the life of a nurse at Kampala’s main referral hospital. The victim passed away on Wednesday, prompting authorities to declare an outbreak the following day. Officials continue to investigate the source of the virus, with no additional confirmed cases reported so far.