Emmanuel Ainebyoona, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Health on Monday, in a statement issued in Kampala, the capital of Uganda, said the number of dead since the virus was first reported in the country on September 20 now stands at 17.

Ainebyoona said as of October 9, the cumulative number of confirmed cases was 48 after four new confirmed cases were registered in the last 48 hours. Of the 48 confirmed cases, nine are health workers. The cumulative number of recoveries is 14 people.

Earlier Monday, Ainebyoona confirmed that a team of senior World Health Organization (WHO) officials was in the country to discuss support for the Ebola response. According to the WHO, the senior officials will also attend the High-Level Emergency Ministerial Meeting on Cross Border Collaboration for Preparedness and Response to Ebola Virus Disease scheduled for October 12.

(With UNI inputs)