Ethiopia Marburg Outbreak 2025: DREF Operational Update (MDRET039)

Country: Ethiopia Source: International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies Please refer to the attached file. Description of the Event Date when the trigger was met 12-11-2025 What happened, where and when? On 26 January 2026, the Federal Ministry of Health (FMoH) declared Ethiopia “Marburg free, ” marking the end of the Marburg virus disease (MVD) outbreak after two consecutive incubation cycles (42 days) without any detected case or death. While the outbreak has officially ended, the outbreak has proved to be a significant public health risk, and recovery and preparedness efforts remain critical to prevent resurgence. In this context, the Ethiopian Red Cross Society (ERCS), in coordination with government and partners, is actively planning post‐outbreak recovery activities. Once finalized, the recovery plan will be integrated into a revised operational strategy and published on GO alongside the next Operations Update. The MVD outbreak was initially declared on 14 November 2025 by the FMoH, in collaboration with the Ethiopian Public Health Institute (EPHI), following confirmation of cases in the South Region of Ethiopia. As of early January, a total of 3, 745 laboratory tests had been conducted, confirming fourteen cases, including nine deaths and five recoveries. Given the high fatality rate and rapid transmissibility of the Marburg virus, an immediate and coordinated public health response was initiated. In response, the ERCS, with support from IFRC through the Disaster Relief Emergency Fund (DREF), implemented a comprehensive preparedness and response operation aligned with national Public Health Emergency Management (PHEM) policies and the Incident Management System (IMS). Since November, ERCS has supported early detection, isolation and contact tracing, strengthened infection prevention and control (IPC) in health facilities, ensured the safety of health workers, mobilized rapid response teams (RRTs), and delivered effective risk communication and community engagement, with a focus on South Ethiopia and Sidama regions.

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