On 1 February 2026 Austria’s foreign ministry issued an updated advisory for Ethiopia, maintaining security level 4 in parts of Amhara and Tigray but adding a rare health alert: an outbreak of the deadly Marburg virus in the Ari-Zone near Jinka. The local lockdown imposed on 29 November 2025 has been extended, and Austrian citizens are told to avoid all non-essential travel to South-Omo.
Humanitarian NGOs headquartered in Vienna, many of which rotate field staff through Addis Ababa, must now arrange pre-deployment medical briefings and confirm evacuation insurance that covers viral haemorrhagic fevers. The advisory also cautions business travellers in Ethiopia’s fast-growing floriculture sector to expect transport bottlenecks, as roadblocks tied to conflict in Amhara spill over into supply chains feeding Addis Ababa’s Bole Airport.
![Marburg Virus Drives New Austrian Warning for Ethiopia’s Southern Regions]()
BMEIA reminds travellers that Ethiopian authorities can impose internal travel permits without notice; Austrian passport holders transiting through conflict zones risk arrest if papers are missing. Companies with Red-White-Red Card assignees stationed in Addis should update emergency action plans and brief staff on curfews that have been sporadically enforced in Oromia and Gambella.
The ministry again encourages registration in its Auslandsservice-App and directs citizens to embassy hotlines that were upgraded last month to handle dual security-and-health crises. Failure to enrol may delay consular assistance, particularly if quarantine measures expand.
Humanitarian NGOs headquartered in Vienna, many of which rotate field staff through Addis Ababa, must now arrange pre-deployment medical briefings and confirm evacuation insurance that covers viral haemorrhagic fevers. The advisory also cautions business travellers in Ethiopia’s fast-growing floriculture sector to expect transport bottlenecks, as roadblocks tied to conflict in Amhara spill over into supply chains feeding Addis Ababa’s Bole Airport.
BMEIA reminds travellers that Ethiopian authorities can impose internal travel permits without notice; Austrian passport holders transiting through conflict zones risk arrest if papers are missing. Companies with Red-White-Red Card assignees stationed in Addis should update emergency action plans and brief staff on curfews that have been sporadically enforced in Oromia and Gambella.
The ministry again encourages registration in its Auslandsservice-App and directs citizens to embassy hotlines that were upgraded last month to handle dual security-and-health crises. Failure to enrol may delay consular assistance, particularly if quarantine measures expand.
