Canada and the Bahamas announced new entry restrictions on Tuesday targeting several African countries affected by an Ebola outbreak, as international health officials fear a wider spread of the virus.
The Canadian government has announced that residents of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda, and South Sudan will be barred from entering the country for 90 days, starting Wednesday. Ottawa says this measure aims to limit the risk of the virus being introduced and spread in Canada.
For their part, the Bahamas announced the immediate implementation of a similar ban for an initial period of 30 days. The country's authorities specified that this decision could be reassessed by the Bahamian Ministry of Health depending on the evolution of the health situation.
These announcements come after the World Health Organization on Friday raised the risk of the Bundibugyo strain of the Ebola virus spreading in the Democratic Republic of Congo to a "very high" level. The WHO now considers the outbreak in the DRC and Uganda a Public Health Emergency of International Concern.
Humanitarian organizations and health authorities are currently intensifying their efforts to contain the disease, particularly in Uganda, where awareness campaigns and health surveillance have been strengthened in recent days.
The current outbreak involves the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola, a less common variant of the virus but one that can cause severe hemorrhagic fevers. International authorities are closely monitoring the risks of cross-border transmission in the region.
The restrictions announced by Canada and the Bahamas are part of a series of preventative measures taken by several countries in response to the resurgence of global health concerns related to Ebola.
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