The Federal Government has confirmed one case of Ebola Virus Disease in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, following laboratory confirmation on Tuesday, October 20, 2026.
The Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Muhammad Ali Pate, who disclosed this in a statement, said the patient is a woman who recently arrived in Nigeria on an international flight from Uganda.
According to the minister, the woman was admitted to a private hospital in the FCT, where she received treatment for several days before the diagnosis was confirmed. She is currently in isolation and receiving medical care.
Contact tracing has commenced, with 44 close contacts identified so far, including healthcare workers, patients, caregivers, and travel contacts. Public health teams have begun tracing the identified contacts and are working to identify and monitor others who might have been exposed.
The Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, and the FCT Health Services Secretariat are working with other relevant authorities to contain the infection and prevent further spread.
Surveillance has also been intensified, while the hospital where the patient was treated is receiving immediate support to strengthen infection prevention and control measures.
The government has urged public and private healthcare facilities across the country to remain on high alert, directing healthcare workers to maintain a high index of suspicion, promptly identify and isolate suspected cases, observe strict infection prevention and control protocols, and immediately report suspected infections to public health authorities.
Pate advised Nigerians to remain calm while observing preventive measures, including regular handwashing and avoiding contact with the blood or other body fluids of anyone suspected of having Ebola. He listed symptoms to watch for to include fever, severe weakness, headache, vomiting, and diarrhoea, particularly among people who may have been exposed to the infection.
“Anyone who develops symptoms should avoid close contact with others and call public health authorities for guidance before visiting a healthcare facility,” the statement advised.
The confirmation comes amid an evolving regional Ebola outbreak. Nigeria’s disease control agency had, in an October 6 advisory, raised concerns about the risk of importing the infection following a confirmed case in Kenya linked to an outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Nigeria previously contained an Ebola outbreak in 2014 after the disease was introduced by an infected traveller. The response involved rapid case identification, isolation, contact tracing, and coordinated public health interventions.
Reassuring Nigerians, Pate said the country had the experience and public health systems required to respond to the current case, but stressed that preventing further transmission would require public cooperation.
Members of the public can contact the NCDC’s toll-free call centre on 6232, available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, to obtain information or report a suspected case.
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