The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention has placed Lagos, the Federal Capital Territory and several other states on high alert following the outbreak of the deadly Bundibugyo strain of Ebola Virus Disease in parts of East and Central Africa.
In a public health advisory issued to commissioners for health nationwide, the agency warned that Nigeria faces a significant risk of importing the virus due to increased regional transmission, international travel, porous borders and population movement.
States identified as high-risk include Lagos, Rivers, Kano, Enugu, Borno, Akwa Ibom, Cross River, Taraba, Adamawa and the FCT, largely because of their airports, seaports, border routes and heavy human traffic.
The advisory, dated May 27, 2026, raised concerns over the spread of the Bundibugyo variant of Ebola, a rare strain for which there is currently no approved vaccine or targeted treatment.
According to the NCDC, the immediate goal of the country’s preparedness efforts is to ensure all states and the FCT can quickly detect, contain and respond to suspected cases while safeguarding health workers and maintaining essential health services.
Although Nigeria has yet to record a confirmed case, the agency said a recent risk assessment conducted after the outbreak was declared a Public Health Emergency of International Concern indicated that the danger of importation into the country remains high.
The NCDC disclosed that Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo had already recorded 1,077 suspected cases and 247 deaths linked to the outbreak, representing a fatality rate of 24.6 per cent.
The agency also noted growing international concerns over the outbreak, revealing that suspected cases had reportedly emerged in India, while Canada imposed temporary restrictions on travel applications involving residents of Uganda, the DRC and South Sudan.
Uganda was also said to have introduced border control measures to limit the spread of the disease.
The NCDC stressed that the Bundibugyo strain differs from the Zaire Ebola strain, which existing vaccines and antibody therapies were developed to combat.
“The current Bundibugyo virus outbreak has no licensed vaccines or approved targeted therapeutics,” the advisory stated.
Health authorities warned that symptoms of Ebola could initially resemble malaria, Lassa fever and other common illnesses, making early detection more challenging.
The agency advised health workers not to wait for signs of bleeding before suspecting Ebola in patients with compatible symptoms and relevant travel or exposure history.
It explained that Ebola is not airborne but spreads mainly through direct contact with infected blood, body fluids, contaminated materials or infected animals.
As part of emergency response measures, the NCDC said its National Emergency Operations Centre had already been activated in alert mode to coordinate preparedness efforts across the country.
State governments were directed to activate Ebola response structures immediately, identify isolation centres, strengthen surveillance at entry points, equip frontline health workers with protective equipment and intensify public sensitisation campaigns to counter panic and misinformation.
The agency also instructed states to submit readiness reports within 72 hours.
The latest alert has revived memories of Nigeria’s successful containment of Ebola during the 2014 outbreak after an infected Liberian-American traveller, Patrick Sawyer, arrived in Lagos and exposed several people to the virus.
At the time, fears of a large-scale outbreak mounted due to Lagos’ dense population and status as a major commercial hub, but aggressive contact tracing, isolation measures and public awareness campaigns helped contain the spread.
The World Health Organisation later commended Nigeria’s response as one of Africa’s most effective Ebola containment efforts.
Public health experts have continued to warn that Nigeria’s busy air traffic, extensive land borders, overcrowded cities and overstretched healthcare system increase the country’s vulnerability during regional disease outbreaks.
The renewed Ebola alert also comes as Nigeria battles multiple infectious disease outbreaks, including Lassa fever, cholera and meningitis in several parts of the country.
Health authorities have urged Nigerians to remain calm, avoid misinformation and unverified cures, maintain proper hygiene and promptly report suspected symptoms as surveillance and preparedness efforts intensify nationwide.
