MOGADISHU, Sept. 21 -- Somalia's Ministry of Health said Wednesday it's on high alert following an outbreak of Ebola virus in Uganda.

The ministry said in collaboration with the Ministry of Transport and Aviation and other relevant agencies it has initiated prevention and response measures to stop the disease from spreading into the country.

It said relevant agencies responsible for border protection and social interaction will take measures to prevent the disease from spreading to the country after the new case was detected in Uganda, where many Somalis live and travel to Mogadishu, the capital of Somalia, as well as other parts of the country.

"The Ministry of Health will be using health experts within the country in close coordination with the World Health Organization (WHO) to start all necessary preparations and response of Ebola including screening all travelers from Uganda," it said in a statement issued in Mogadishu.

Ugandan authorities said Tuesday they had detected an Ebola case in Ngabano village, Mubende district in the central part of the country, and a 24-year-old male patient has already succumbed to the highly contagious hemorrhagic fever.

Uganda has previously reported Ebola outbreaks largely influenced by Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) outbreaks.

According to the WHO, the disease is transmitted to people from animals and spreads through human-to-human infection.

Uganda has had at least three previous outbreaks of Ebola virus disease, the deadliest being in 2000 when hundreds of people died of the disease.

  - Xinhua