Health workers stand in a new Ebola treatment center during a visit of WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus in Bunia, northeastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, on May 31, 2026. [AFP]
The Kenya Association of Physicians (KAP) has said Kenya should not establish an Ebola quarantine facility because the Bundibugyo strain carries a significant risk with no known vaccine or treatment.
The physicians said the diagnostic capability for the strain is also limited with no validated testing tool.
The United States has committed Sh1.7 billion towards establishing the Ebola quarantine facility in Laikipia County to cater for its citizens who may be exposed to the virus.
However, the facility has been opposed by a section of Kenynas and doctors over safety concerns.
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KAP Chairperson Erick Njenga said that regardless of the very best containment strategies, the risk of exposure to the local community remains a real.
Dr Njenga warned that such a facility introduces an alarming biosecurity threat to the republic of Kenya.
“If the risk is deemed too severe for America, it begs the question why the Kenyan government seems willing to expose its citizens to it under the cover of global responsibility,” he said.
The KPA chairperson accused President William Ruto of excluding the infectious disease specialists and physicians, from the decision-making process and lacking transparency.
He questioned the rationale of setting up the quarantine facility in Kenya while the US has categorically declined to allow Ebola patients within its borders.
“The United States government has explicitly stated it will not allow any Ebola cases within its own borders, despite possessing superior containment infrastructure and specialized treatment centres designed to manage such outbreaks,” said Dr Njenga.
He urged the government to halt the process immediately and prioritise national health security, and engage local medical experts.
“KAP is profoundly concerned by the complete lack of transparency surrounding this initiative and the total exclusion of key stakeholders, including infectious disease specialists and physicians, from the decision-making process. KAP believes such a facility introduces an alarming biosecurity threat to the republic,” said Dr Njenga.