The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) has placed Lagos, the Federal Capital Territory and several other states on high Ebola alert following the outbreak of the deadly Bundibugyo strain of Ebola Virus Disease in parts of East and Central Africa.
In a national public health advisory issued to commissioners for health across the country, the agency warned that Nigeria faces a high risk of importing the virus due to increasing regional transmission, international travel, porous borders, and population movement.
The advisory, dated May 27, 2026, comes amid growing concerns over the spread of the Bundibugyo variant of Ebola — a rare strain for which there is currently no approved vaccine or specific treatment.
States classified by the NCDC as high-risk include Lagos, the FCT, Rivers, Kano, Enugu, Borno, Akwa Ibom, Cross River, Taraba, and Adamawa, because of their international airports, seaports, border routes, and high human traffic.
“The immediate objective of our national preparedness and readiness efforts is to ensure that every state and the FCT can reasonably detect, contain, and respond swiftly to any suspected case while protecting health workers and sustaining essential health services,” the NCDC stated.
The agency disclosed that although Nigeria has not recorded any confirmed case, a dynamic risk assessment conducted after the outbreak was declared a public health emergency of international concern showed that the danger of importation into Nigeria remains high.
According to the NCDC, 1,077 suspected cases and 247 deaths have already been reported in Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo, with a fatality rate of 24.6 per cent.
It added that the outbreak has also triggered international concern, with suspected cases reportedly identified in India, while Canada announced temporary restrictions on travel applications involving residents of Uganda, DRC, and South Sudan.
Uganda has also reportedly introduced border closure measures to contain the spread.
The NCDC stressed that the Bundibugyo strain differs from the Zaire Ebola strain, which existing vaccines and antibody treatments primarily target.
“The current Bundibugyo virus outbreak has no licensed vaccines or approved targeted therapeutics,” the advisory warned.
Health officials also cautioned that Ebola symptoms could initially resemble malaria, Lassa fever, or other common illnesses, making early detection more difficult.
“Health workers must not wait for bleeding before suspecting Ebola in any patient with compatible symptoms and relevant travel or exposure history,” the agency said.
As part of emergency preparedness measures, the agency said its National Emergency Operations Centre has already been activated in alert mode to coordinate nationwide response efforts.
State governments were directed to immediately activate Ebola preparedness structures, identify isolation centres, intensify surveillance at entry points, equip frontline health workers with personal protective equipment, and begin public sensitisation campaigns to counter panic and misinformation.
The PUNCH