Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale has declared that Kenya will no longer allow foreign governments to use its facilities as Ebola quarantine sites for their citizens.
Speaking at a press conference at Afya House in Nairobi on Wednesday, November 11, Duale said the decision is final and applies to all foreign jurisdictions. The announcement comes after the United States sought to quarantine its citizens returning from the Democratic Republic of Congo at a facility in Laikipia.
"Let me make it clear that Kenya will not serve as a quarantine centre for any jurisdiction. Travellers from another country will not be hosted in Kenya to meet another country's entry requirement," Duale said.
Duale added that the Ministry of Health will not issue quarantine certificates or Ebola-free certifications for international travel. He explained that such documents have no legal basis under the International Health Regulations.
The policy stance coincides with a major milestone in Kenya’s management of the virus. The Ministry of Health discharged its last Ebola patient on Wednesday alongside the final batch of 11 contacts who completed their mandatory monitoring period in good health.
Kenya has now recorded zero active cases and zero contacts in quarantine. Since the first imported case was confirmed on October 3, the country recorded nine cases of the Ebola Bundibugyo strain and two deaths.
