The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) says all 62 contacts identified following the confirmation of an imported Ebola case in Nigeria are expected to complete their monitoring by November 13, 2026.
In its latest Ebola Disease Situation Report, the agency disclosed that the monitoring period for the identified contacts would end at different times between October 31 and November 13. It added that contact tracing and surveillance activities were ongoing to prevent further transmission of the disease.
The NCDC said additional contact tracers had been identified and trained to strengthen surveillance, while plans were underway to assess more contacts for possible evacuation to the quarantine facility. It also disclosed that the criteria for identifying contacts and suspected Ebola cases had been reviewed and expanded to improve detection and response.
On laboratory investigations, the agency said 18 samples had been tested since the outbreak was confirmed, with one positive result from the index patient and 17 negative results. The negative samples comprised 15 collected from contacts and two from suspected cases. It added that genomic sequencing of the confirmed sample had been completed in collaboration with the African Centre of Excellence for Genomics of Infectious Diseases.
The agency also reported progress in strengthening Nigeria’s response infrastructure, including the activation of the National Incident Management System under the leadership of the Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Professor Muhammad Ali Pate. It said the University of Abuja Teaching Hospital had undergone a readiness assessment to serve as an isolation and treatment centre, while a dedicated ambulance had been secured for safe patient referrals.
The NCDC further disclosed that infection prevention and control measures had been strengthened across health facilities, with healthcare workers receiving sensitisation and refresher training. It also listed plans to improve diagnostic capacity, expand testing to Lagos, establish referral systems and strengthen preparedness in states considered to be at high risk.
Nigeria confirmed its first case of Ebola disease in the current outbreak on October 20, 2026, after laboratory tests detected the Bundibugyo virus in a woman who travelled from Uganda. The World Health Organisation said the patient developed symptoms on October 7, four days after arriving in Nigeria, and sought medical attention at a private hospital in Abuja on October 11.
The index patient was evacuated to Switzerland on October 26 for further medical care alongside her husband, who was identified as a close contact. Nigeria became the fifth country to detect the virus since the outbreak was declared in the Democratic Republic of the Congo on May 15, 2026.
Meanwhile, the NCDC has ruled out two suspected Ebola cases reported in Yola, Adamawa State, following two rounds of laboratory testing. The Director-General of the agency, Dr Jide Idris, said the state’s Public Health Emergency Operations Centre received information about two individuals presenting symptoms suggestive of the disease in the early hours of October 30.
Idris said the individuals were immediately isolated and samples collected for investigation. He confirmed that both tested negative for Ebola, stressing that there was no laboratory-confirmed case in Adamawa State and that the Abuja infection remained Nigeria’s only confirmed case.
Newsmen had reported on November 1 that the suspected cases involved a 34-year-old pilot and his wife, a medical doctor, who were admitted to the isolation centre of Modibbo Adama University Teaching Hospital in Yola on October 29. The newspaper, citing an internal memo from the Adamawa State Ministry of Health and Human Services, reported that the couple had experienced symptoms including fever, vomiting, fatigue, headache and unexplained bleeding.
The NCDC chief commended the Adamawa State Commissioner for Health and his team for their prompt response, assuring that the agency would continue to provide technical support to strengthen surveillance and emergency response activities.
