World Cup host nations agree to measures to combat the threat of Ebola after the WHO declared a public health emergency of international concern.
Published May 28, 2026
The United States, Mexico and Canada have announced public health travel measures for people arriving from parts of Africa where the risk of Ebola is highest, aimed at protecting their citizens and visitors during the World Cup, which begins next month.
“As we welcome the world’s people to North America, the health and safety of all people in the region remains our top priority,” the two countries said in a joint statement Thursday, without providing details of the coordinated measures.
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The World Health Organization on May 17 declared the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) a public health emergency of international concern, saying there was a high risk of spread to neighboring countries.
The decision prompted governments around the world to tighten travel-related containment measures.
Last week, the U.S. government banned noncitizens from entering the United States who have traveled to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda, or South Sudan in recent weeks. On Friday, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention extended the ban to green card holders who have been to those countries in the past 21 days.
Canada has banned residents from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda and South Sudan from entering the country for 90 days. The ban began on Wednesday.
Starting Saturday, Canadian citizens, permanent residents and other foreign nationals who have been in an infected area in recent weeks and do not have symptoms will be required to quarantine for 21 days, the Public Health Agency of Canada said.
Mexico’s Health Secretary David Kaschenovich outlined stepped-up Ebola screening at airports on Monday, urging citizens to avoid traveling to the Democratic Republic of the Congo and requiring arrivals from the country to adhere to a 21-day quarantine.
