Sub Saharan Africa

A (H1N1) (Swine flu)

There are confirmed cases of the A (H1N1) virus (Swine Flu) in Rwanda (source: the Ministry of Health’s Epidemic Infectious Disease Unit).

The government has set up an emergency working group to coordinate policy on the illness. The public are being advised to take health precautions such as covering mouth and nose when sneezing, increase hand-washing and report suspected cases to the authorities. Rwanda has 14,000 doses of Tamiflu available. Rwanda has for some months being asking travellers entering through Kigali Airport to complete health forms, but has not at present put in place similar checks at the land borders.  The Government of Rwanda has set up a free hotline (3334 or 3335) to provide further information.  You should monitor media reports for any developments.  

The World Health Organisation (WHO) Pandemic Threat Alert Phase has been raised to Level 6. The WHO website at: http://www.who.int/csr/disease/swineflu/en/index.html has further details. Check Swine Flu for further information. You can obtain further guidance on Pandemic Flu on the UK Department of Health website http://www.dh.gov.uk.

General

Only limited medical facilities are available.  In the event of serious accident or illness an evacuation by air ambulance to Kenya or South Africa may be required.

 

Malaria is common to Rwanda.

In the 2008 Report on the Global AIDS Epidemic the UNAIDS/WHO Working Group estimated that around 130,000 adults aged 15 or over in Rwanda were living with HIV; the prevalence rate was estimated at around 2.8% of the adult population. This compares to the prevalence rate in adults in the UK of around 0.2%.  You should exercise normal precautions to avoid exposure to HIV/AIDS. For more general information on how to do this see HIV and AIDS.

 

You should seek medical advice before travelling to Rwanda and ensure that all appropriate vaccinations are up to date. For further information on vaccination requirements, health outbreaks and general disease protection and prevention you should visit the websites of NaTHNaC and NHS Scotland's Fit For Travel or call NHS Direct on 0845 46 47.

For more general health information see Travel Health.