Kenya recorded its first imported Ebola case after a Kenyan man who had lived in the Democratic Republic of Congo died in Nairobi following his arrival on Jambojet flight 8523 on October 3.

Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale said the patient fell ill about a month earlier, received treatment at several hospitals in the DRC, travelled by road to Kampala, Uganda, and then flew to Nairobi, arriving at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport at 13:10 before being taken to Nairobi Hospital where he was placed in isolation and later died on the night of October 5.

The Ministry of Health announced that 28 contacts have been identified and that 23 passengers and four crew members from the same flight are being traced, with all persons considered at risk to be quarantined for 21 days.

As of October 6 the ministry reported having screened 652,584 travellers, tested 267 samples across five laboratories and trained nearly 5,000 health workers, while isolation units have been identified and surveillance strengthened at points of entry.

The World Health Organization noted Kenya’s response included screening at high-risk entry points, case investigation, contact tracing and enhanced surveillance, and Professor Omu Anzala called for renewed simulation exercises at borders and airports.

The case has raised concerns for the tourism sector, which saw international visitor arrivals rise 6.2 per cent to 2.55 million in 2025 and hotel bed-night occupancy increase 12.6 per cent to 11.56 million, while Tourism Principal Secretary John Ololtua warned that misinformation was causing unnecessary travel cancellations.

Jambojet said it was cooperating with the ministry to identify and manage exposed passengers and crew, urged travellers to rely on verified information, and noted it had resumed daily Nairobi-Entebbe flights on October 1 after a six-year hiatus, carrying the Ebola patient two days later; the airline projects cross-border passenger traffic to exceed 300,000 travellers in 2026.

Kenya becomes the third country to record a case linked to the eastern Congo outbreak after Uganda, and the United States, which had pledged US$13.5 million for an Ebola quarantine facility in Laikipia, suspended construction following a court dispute; the United States now classifies Kenya as a Level Two travel destination.