Scientists Urge End to Place-Based Virus Naming to Prevent Stigma

African scientists are spearheading a campaign to eliminate geographical labels from virus names, citing the persistent damage they inflict on communities. The movement has gained significant traction following the World Health Organization’s declaration of the Bundibugyo Ebola outbreak as a Public Health Emergency of International Concern.

The Bundibugyo Ebola virus, which can be fatal in up to 50 percent of cases, is named after a district in Western Uganda. Despite Uganda declaring its outbreak over in July, some international travel advisories remain, while neighboring Democratic Republic of Congo continues to face cases. Ugandan Health Minister Dr. Chris Baryomunsi noted that residents of Bundibugyo experience stigmatization when associated with the disease, even though no infections have been reported there in the current outbreak.

“It’s a concern we are hearing from the scientific world; we speak about it to avoid the stigma,” stated Jean Kaseya, Director General of the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC). Discussions are reportedly underway with international scientific bodies to explore renaming pathogens with geographical identifiers.

Professor Pontiano Kaleebu, Director of the Uganda Virus Research Institute (UVRI), explained that virus naming has long been a contentious issue. “So the name Bundibugyo, why is it called Bundibugyo? At one time, the naming/creation of viruses had decided to stop using these names which tend to profile, label countries and regional areas. But this still continues,” he said. He noted that historical naming conventions, like Ebola Sudan and Ebola Zaire, were based on initial discovery locations, with the Bundibugyo strain being named similarly after its identification in the district.

This initiative aligns with broader global shifts in health communication. The WHO, for instance, adopted “mpox” as the preferred name for monkeypox in 2022 to combat racist and stigmatizing language. Similarly, the coronavirus variant initially dubbed the “South African variant” was renamed Omicron to prevent discrimination and simplify communication, demonstrating a growing international consensus against place-based pathogen nomenclature.