Nigeria tightens surveillance, WHO declares emergency as Ebola kills 88 in Congo
The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) has said that although currently Nigeria has no confirmed case of Ebola Virus Disease (EVD), it is, nevertheless, actively strengthening surveillance, following the death of 88 in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and a reported imported case in Uganda.
In a statement by its Director General, Jide Idris, on Sunday, the NCDC noted that it is also ramping up laboratory readiness, infection prevention, and public awareness efforts across the country. The development comes as the World Health Organization (WHO) has declared the latest Ebola outbreak in the DRC and neighbouring Uganda a “public health emergency of international concern”.
The outbreak, originating in eastern DRC’s Ituri province, which has seen around 246 suspected cases, involves the rare Bundibugyo strain of Ebola. The variant has no approved vaccine or treatment. Health authorities said the outbreak poses a high regional risk because infections have already been detected in Uganda, and cases linked to the outbreak have reached Congo’s capital, Kinshasa.
The WHO, however, stopped short of declaring a pandemic, saying it did not meet the necessary criteria. The United Nations agency advised countries against closing borders or restricting trade. Early symptoms include fever, muscle pain, fatigue, headache, and sore throat, and are followed by vomiting, diarrhoea, a rash, and bleeding. The WHO said there are now eight laboratory-confirmed cases of the virus, with other suspected cases and deaths across three health zones, including Bunia, the capital of Ituri province, and the gold-mining towns of Mongwalu and Rwampara.
One case of the virus has been confirmed in the capital Kinshasa, believed to be in a patient returning from Ituri. The WHO said that the virus has spread beyond DR Congo, with two confirmed cases reported in neighbouring Uganda. Ugandan officials said a 59-year-old man who died on Thursday had tested positive.
