The Kenyan government has expressed concern over Saudi Arabia's decision to suspend travel to and from Kenya due to the Ebola situation. In a diplomatic note, Kenya's Ministry of Foreign and Diaspora Affairs requested Riyadh to review and lift the measures, warning that they would negatively impact Kenyan pilgrims, workers, students, trade, and tourism. The note emphasized that the restrictions are disproportionate and unsupported by scientific evidence.
Kenya acknowledged Saudi Arabia's right to introduce public health measures to protect its citizens but argued that the decision did not reflect the progress made in containing the disease. The government stated that all nine confirmed cases belonged to one cluster linked to an imported case, with no evidence of community transmission. This, according to Kenya, demonstrates that the outbreak has been contained.
The Kenyan government reported that seven patients were still receiving treatment but were responding well to supportive care and were expected to be discharged on November 3. Additionally, 46 contacts were due to complete quarantine on the same date, provided they maintained a negative status. The government also stated that all 135 contacts had been traced and monitored daily since the outbreak was reported.
Kenya invoked the World Health Organisation's (WHO) position, stating that the agency had assessed the country's response as professional, diligent, and transparent, and advised against travel and trade restrictions. The WHO had rated the risk outside the Democratic Republic of Congo and its neighboring countries as low. This, according to Kenya, supports the argument that the travel ban is unjustified.
The Kenyan government described Saudi Arabia's decision to suspend visas and bar people who had been in Kenya within the previous 21 days as a blanket measure that went beyond what the public health situation justified. The government warned that the restrictions would affect Kenyans traveling to Saudi Arabia for religious pilgrimages, employment, education, and business, as well as damage trade and tourism ties.
Kenya requested Saudi Arabia's national focal point to provide the WHO with the scientific justification for the restrictions under Regulation 43 of the International Health Regulations (2005). The government also called for the measures to be reviewed within three months. Failure to provide a justification could lead to Kenya raising the matter with the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention.
The Kenyan government expressed willingness to provide Saudi Arabia's Public Health Authority with a detailed technical briefing on the outbreak and its containment efforts. Kenya seeks a reversal of the decision, maintaining that its surveillance, contact tracing, and quarantine measures have contained the outbreak. The government emphasized that the travel ban could be seen as a potentially hostile act against the continent if not backed by scientific evidence.
Key points
- Kenya criticizes Saudi Arabia's travel ban as disproportionate and unsupported by scientific evidence.
- The Kenyan government reports that the Ebola outbreak has been contained with no evidence of community transmission.
- Kenya requests Saudi Arabia to provide scientific justification for the travel ban under International Health Regulations.
