January 2023 — On 20 September 2022, an outbreak of the Sudan strain of Ebola Virus Disease – SVD – was announced as the first laboratory-confirmed patient was identified in a village in Mubende District in central Uganda. Uganda’s Ministry of Health (MoH) activated the National Task Force and developed and deployed a National Response Plan, which includes the activation of District Task Forces. The target areas include the epicentre (Mubende and Kassanda districts) and surrounding areas, as well as Masaka, Jinja and Kampala cities. This is of great concern, as Kampala is the capital city with a high population and linkages to neighbouring districts and international locations (via Entebbe Airport). It is also a serious matter given that there has been no outbreak of Ebola before in the city.

This Social Science in Humanitarian Action Platform (SSHAP) brief, requested by UNICEF Uganda, draws from the authors’ experience conducting social science research on Ebola preparedness and response in Uganda. This brief details how Risk Communication and Community Engagement (RCCE) activities and approaches can be adapted to reach people living in Greater Kampala to increase adoption of preventive behaviours and practices, early recognition of symptoms, care seeking and case reporting. The insights in this brief were collected from emergent on-the-ground observations from the recent outbreak by embedded researchers, consultations with stakeholders, and a rapid review of relevant published and gray literature.

Some key considerations include:

• Perception of Ebola risk is low in Kampala, for reasons including fatigue from COVID-19 and public inexperience with urban Ebola outbreaks. Risk communication must be widespread and emphasize clear and coherent prevention and awareness information.

• Mass media can be used more effectively to increase awareness about the SVD outbreak. Journalists should continuously be engaged to incorporate SVD prevention messages into popular TV and radio programming in Luganda, English, other relevant local languages, and languages spoken by refugee or immigrant populations. Other channels, including social media and newspapers, are also important. Audio and visual formats will support risk communication to people not able or comfortable to engage in written information in English or Luganda.

• Consider testing comprehension of risk communication material with intended audiences to ensure key messages are understood and to avoid risks of inadvertent misinterpretation, especially for material containing complex terminology or information, or that which has been translated.

• Communication about Ebola needs to take a realistic approach to people’s ability to prioritize viral risks above other socioeconomic risks (particularly for precarious and low-income populations). Messaging should target preventive action that can be interwoven with the type of movement and mixing upon which livelihoods rely. RCCE actors should also emphasize that the need for preventive measures is temporary, and that they may help avoid further restrictions.

To read the full brief, please click here.