The Bundibugyo strain, for which no approved vaccine or specific treatment is available, was detected in a diplomat who travelled from Uganda to Abuja.
Nigeria has confirmed its first case of Ebola virus disease caused by the Bundibugyo strain, with the infected patient, identified as a diplomat, reportedly deteriorating into multi-organ failure.
The development was disclosed at an emergency meeting on Wednesday, where health officials confirmed that laboratory tests had identified the strain responsible for a major outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
According to the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC), the patient is a woman who travelled from Uganda to Abuja on October 3.
Olajumoke Babatunde, Director of Public Health Laboratory Services at the NCDC, said three rounds of molecular testing were conducted to establish the infection.
“We did three levels of tests, but all molecular. The strain was Bundibugyo,” she said.
The World Health Organization (WHO) also confirmed the strain, which currently has no approved vaccine or specific treatment.
Another official disclosed that the patient was a diplomat and had developed multi-organ failure. However, the official did not reveal her nationality.
44 Contacts Identified as Nigeria Steps Up Surveillance
In response to the confirmed case, Nigerian health authorities have identified 44 contacts linked to the patient and are monitoring them while intensifying efforts to trace additional people who may have been exposed to the virus.
The WHO said infection prevention and control measures were being strengthened at the private hospital where the patient initially sought medical attention.
The confirmation has raised concerns about the potential spread of the virus in Nigeria, Africa’s most populous country, as health authorities across the continent grapple with a widening outbreak.
Nigeria’s last Ebola outbreak occurred in 2014, when the country successfully contained the spread of the disease.
The latest development comes amid a major Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where health authorities have reported more than 9,000 confirmed cases and 4,381 deaths.
The outbreak, which was declared in mid-May, has spread beyond central Africa, with cases also reported in other parts of the continent, including Uganda and Kenya.
Jean Kaseya, Director-General of the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), warned on Tuesday that the situation posed an extremely serious threat, urging the international community to take urgent action.
“My appeal to the international community is urgent: ACT NOW,” Kaseya said.
He described the outbreak as the most geographically widespread Ebola outbreak in history, affecting multiple countries across three African regions.
Kenya has also reported its ninth Ebola case and death, according to the report, while the fatality rate in the DRC continues to approach 50 per cent.
Uganda, meanwhile, was officially declared Ebola-free by the WHO in August after recording 20 cases, nearly all involving people who had travelled from the DRC.
Despite concerns over the confirmed case, some Nigerians have expressed confidence in the country’s ability to contain the virus, according to the report by the Vanguard.
Anthony Ojogho, a civil servant, said Nigeria had previously demonstrated its capacity to respond to public health emergencies, including the 2014 Ebola outbreak and the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Nigerian governments have always been equal to the task. We contained Ebola, we contained coronavirus and the few cases we have now,” he said.
He expressed optimism that appropriate preventive measures would limit the spread of the virus.
“If the right steps are being taken, I’m very sure that we’re going to contain to a large extent the spread of Ebola virus in Nigeria.”
With contact tracing and infection-control measures underway, health authorities face the immediate challenge of preventing further transmission while monitoring the condition of the infected diplomat.
The situation also underscores the importance of cross-border surveillance and coordinated public health responses as the outbreak spreads across multiple regions of Africa.
