Months of Ebola drills let Nigeria confirm its first case in 24 hours

Abuja — Nigeria confirmed its first Ebola case within 24 hours because of preparation that began months before the virus arrived, Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare Muhammad Ali Pate said on Arise News Television on Wednesday, Premium Times reports.

What was done in advance

• May: the federal government identified 21 states and the FCT as being at high or moderate risk of an imported case.
• September: the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) raised its preparedness level and strengthened surveillance; travellers from countries with active transmission may be asked to fill in health declaration forms.
• Laboratory capacity was expanded, health workers were trained and states' readiness was assessed.

Pate said this allowed the authorities to confirm the infection quickly, notify the World Health Organization under the International Health Regulations and start containment and contact tracing.

The case

The patient, confirmed on Tuesday, is a woman who arrived on an international flight from Uganda and is being treated in isolation at a private hospital in the Federal Capital Territory. Africa CDC Director-General Jean Kaseya said she lives in Abuja and had been on holiday in Kampala. 44 close contacts were initially identified, including health workers, patients, carers and fellow travellers.

Experience counts

Pate pointed to Nigeria's record: in 2014 the country contained Ebola after a traveller arrived in Lagos, with 20 cases, and the WHO declared it free of transmission on 20 October that year, after 42 days without a new case. Odianosen Ehiakhamen, the NCDC's incident manager for the national Ebola response, said responders from 2014 who are still in the country have been named focal persons.

Health facilities have been asked to stay alert, isolate suspected cases and report them.

Source: Premium Times, 22 October 2026.