By Elijah Koome
An X post published on October 14, 2026, by a user called 9teen:84 claimed that the Ministry of Health fabricated reports of the second Ebola case to collect donor funds. At the time of review, the post had gained 29 retweets and 45 likes.
Background
About a week after Kenya reported its first Ebola case, news of a second case emerged. The first victim was a Kenyan man who had been living in the DRC but had come to Kenya already infected. The second case, according to the Ministry of Health, was a relative of the first. So far, Kenya has received substantial funding from foreign countries and multilateral bodies to fight the disease. According to a report by the Daily Nation, Kenya has received KSh 1.9 billion from the USA, KSh 129 million from China, and KSh 3.3 million from the World Bank and assorted equipment from other donors. This is not the first time Kenya has received support to prepare for Ebola. Similar support was provided in the past, for example in 2014 and 2015, when there was an outbreak in West Africa.
Verification
The notion that the Ministry of Health fabricated the second Ebola case to acquire donor money is not supported by the evidence. Beyond the Ministry of Health, other high-authority sources like the World Health Organisation (WHO) confirmed that Kenya had indeed reported its second Ebola case. Further, the latest reports confirm that a second patient who is related to the first victim has succumbed to the disease, bringing the number of fatalities in Kenya due to Ebola to two. If the reports of the Ebola spread in Kenya were fabricated, there would not be real and identifiable victims being affected by the disease. In addition, globally recognised, high-authority sources like WHO would not have backed the reports from the Ministry of Health.
Verdict
The claim that reports of the second Ebola case in Kenya are fabricated is FALSE.
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