Despite the country currently reporting zero confirmed cases of the Ebola Virus, the National Public Health Institute of Liberia (NPHIL) says that the country remains at heightened risk for infection. Recently, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DR Congo) reported a new outbreak of the Ebola virus disease in the country. As of Monday, May 19, the BBC said that at least 131 deaths had been reported in an Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo, with more than 513 cases suspected.
A spokesman for the DR Congo government to the global news body that cases were now being reported over a wider area. There are also two confirmed cases and one death in Uganda, says the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The report stated that the World Health Organization (WHO) has declared the outbreak of the current strain of Ebola, which is caused by the Bundibugyo virus, an international emergency.
Speaking on Tuesday, May 19, 2026, at the Ministry of Information’s regular press briefing, Dr. Sia Watta Camanor, Intern Director General of NPHIL, said there were no active cases of Ebola in the country. However, given regional connectivity and movement, Liberia remains at heightened risk.
She disclosed that preparedness remains a national security priority, adding that Liberia’s experience with Ebola, COVID-19, and other outbreaks has significantly strengthened its systems.
According to her, NPHIL has strengthened event-based and routine surveillance, active community engagement and rumor tracking, continuous reporting and monitoring nationwide, amongst others.
Dr. Camanor said the entity has intensified screening at airports, seaports, and land borders, and strengthened collaboration with immigration and security agencies, but noted that the effectiveness of these efforts depends heavily on adequately staffing Points of Entry.
“We have the availability of trained laboratory personnel, strengthened specimen collection and transport systems,” she said, stating that they are in continued collaboration with international partners while at the same time keeping functional Incident Management Systems and Ready-to-deploy rapid response teams.
“We have strengthened public communication to ensure timely, accurate information. There are public awareness campaigns through radio and community platforms,” Dr. Camanor told reporters. Meanwhile, NPHIL has disclosed that it monitoring delegates from Ebola-hit region for signs of infection.
