East African Community mobile laboratories deployed to combat the Bundibugyo Ebola outbreak

In the wake of the recent outbreak of the Bundibugyo virus in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the East African Community, together with its national partners, has activated the regional network of mobile laboratories. The aim is to provide diagnostic testing and monitoring as close as possible to where suspected cases arise – particularly at busy border locations.

Mobile and stationary laboratories have been put into operation at the following locations, amongst others:

• Bwera and Arua in Uganda
• Gisenyi and Gihundwe in Rwanda
• Bukoba in Tanzania
• Kobero in Burundi
• Beni in the DR Congo
• Nimule in South Sudan

The laboratories work closely with the national public health institutes and the EAC Centre of Excellence for Viral Infections.

The mission teams come from the participating countries: laboratory managers and specialist staff have received comprehensive training in recent years as part of the EAC Mobile Labs Network and now form the core of the region’s mobile diagnostic capabilities.

“This is exactly the kind of situation for which the East African Community’s mobile laboratory network was set up and for which we have trained our colleagues: to test suspected cases quickly on site, trace and break chains of infection, and thus gain valuable time in outbreak management,” say Dr Muna Affara und Dr Florian Gehre from the Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine (BNITM). “The EAC Mobile Labs are thus making an important contribution to epidemic preparedness and helping to make health systems in the region more resilient.”

Rapid testing at borders supports the region

Ebola virus outbreaks pose major challenges for affected countries and their health systems. Early, reliable testing is crucial for quickly identifying infected individuals, tracing contacts and implementing protective measures.

Border regions play a central role in this. This is where trade routes, commuter flows and refugee movements intersect – infections can spread rapidly across national borders. Fixed reference laboratories are often located far away, and transporting samples takes time and ties up resources.

The EAC’s mobile laboratories enable samples to be tested directly on site. This shortens the time to results and strengthens regional capacity to act. At the same time, the laboratories enable close monitoring of the situation: suspected cases can be systematically tested, data rapidly shared and decision-makers promptly informed.

Background: The Bundibugyo virus

The Bundibugyo virus belongs to the genus of Ebola viruses and can cause severe haemorrhagic fever. Outbreaks have occurred in the past in Uganda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, amongst other places. Typical symptoms include sudden onset of fever, severe weakness, headache and muscle pain, followed by vomiting, diarrhoea and, in severe cases, bleeding. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), the mortality rate ranges from 30 to 50 per cent, depending on the outbreak and healthcare infrastructure.

• Design and establishment of mobile laboratory facilities
• Intensive training  in diagnostics, biosafety and quality management
• Train-the-Trainer programmes to strengthen national training capacities
• Joint development and evaluation of diagnostic kits
• Support in establishing quality assurance programmes

In the current Bundibugyo virus outbreak, the BNITM is primarily supporting partner laboratories with test validation and differential diagnosis. Diagnostic kits for around 1,000 samples are already available in the region, and additional materials can be supplied as required.