How Ruto's trip to Congo was cancelled, staff quarantined over Ebola fears

How Ruto's trip to Congo was cancelled, staff quarantined over Ebola fears details how Kenya’s President William Ruto had a planned May trip to the Republic of Congo shelved due to Ebola risk. Appearing before the High Court on Tuesday, Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale said Ruto was scheduled to attend the Brazzaville Conference on May 26, 2026. Duale told the court that after consultations with Dr Patrick Amoth, the Director-General for Health, and other experts, he advised Ruto against traveling because on return he would face a mandatory 21-day quarantine. The President then delivered his address virtually, and Duale said the advance team that had traveled to Congo was quarantined for 21 days upon returning to Kenya. The hearing also addresses the government’s broader Ebola response and the establishment of quarantine facilities amid concerns over regional outbreaks. Duale previously defended the contested US-funded quarantine site in Nanyuki, Laikipia county as scientifically unlikely to spread Ebola to nearby communities.