Nigeria confirms first Ebola case in Abuja
Nigeria confirmed an Ebola case in its capital, Abuja, on Tuesday after a woman who arrived from Uganda tested positive for the virus, reports BritPanorama.
The woman began showing symptoms on October 7 and was admitted to a private hospital in Abuja on October 11, where she was later diagnosed with Ebola. The timing of her arrival in Nigeria remains unclear.
Health Minister Muhammad Pate stated that authorities initiated contact tracing for 44 individuals linked to the patient. “We are doing everything possible to contain this case by tracing all the contacts the individual may have had,” he said.
While Uganda had previously reported Ebola cases, it later declared itself free of the virus. Uganda’s Ministry of Health clarified that the patient had only transited through Uganda and is a Nigerian woman who was on a business trip to Congo’s eastern region. The Nigerian authorities have not released her specific nationality.
“Travel through Uganda does not establish that infection occurred here. The location of exposure remains under investigation,” the ministry remarked in a statement, asserting that Uganda has “no confirmed active Ebola cases.”
Nigeria joins the list of countries reporting Ebola as the outbreak spreads within the region. Earlier this month, Kenya confirmed its first case and has since recorded nine infections.
Dr. Jean Kaseya, director general of the Africa Centers for Disease Control, warned on X that “we are facing an extremely serious threat,” citing a fatality rate of nearly 50% for current cases.
He noted that the Bundibugyo Ebola outbreak is already the most geographically extensive in history, impacting several countries across three regions of Africa.
The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control had ramped up surveillance two weeks ago following respective Ebola detections in Kenya, enhancing the country’s preparedness for a potential outbreak. Their efforts target early detection, isolation and referral, laboratory diagnosis, infection prevention and control, contact tracing, and the safety of health care workers.
In response to the outbreak in Congo earlier this year, Nigeria established an Ebola task force in June. “We do not want a repeat of what happened during the last outbreak when a carrier entered the country, and everyone was scrambling to respond,” said Femi Gbajabiamila, chief of staff to President Bola Tinubu, when the task force was announced.
The spread of Ebola beyond Congo has intensified concerns among health authorities regarding the swift transmission of the Bundibugyo virus, which has infected over 9,500 individuals and resulted in more than 4,600 deaths.
The latest outbreak is being reported as the fastest-spreading Ebola outbreak on record and is projected to surpass the deadliest on record, the West Africa outbreak between 2014 and 2016, which killed 11,000 people, according to the World Health Organization. Nigeria was impacted during that outbreak, recording 20 cases before it was declared over after three months.
