Africa CDC Seeks Urgent Support for Nigeria’s Ebola Response

ABUJA, Nigeria – The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) has urged international partners to provide emergency funding, medical supplies and trained personnel to help Nigeria contain a confirmed Ebola case in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

The agency’s Director-General, Dr Jean Kaseya, made the appeal on Tuesday after a discussion with Nigeria’s Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Muhammad Ali Pate, who informed him of the infection.

In a statement shared on Africa CDC’s official X account, Kaseya commended Pate for his transparency and leadership. He said prompt reporting was critical to saving lives and strengthening outbreak response efforts.

Kaseya called for immediate, flexible funding, diagnostic equipment, medical supplies, trained emergency responders and stronger community-based surveillance to prevent further transmission.

“My appeal to the international community is urgent: ACT NOW,” he said. “Every day of delay costs lives. Africa’s health security is global health security.”

He warned against allowing the outbreak to spread across borders and reaffirmed Africa CDC’s commitment to supporting Nigeria’s response.

The Federal Government confirmed an imported Ebola case in the FCT after laboratory tests detected the virus in a woman who had recently travelled to Nigeria from Uganda.

Nigerian health authorities have begun contact tracing and identified 44 close contacts. The group includes healthcare workers, patients, caregivers and people linked to the woman’s travel.

The government has also urged healthcare facilities to strengthen surveillance, promptly isolate suspected cases, enforce infection prevention measures and report possible infections to public health authorities.

Kaseya said Africa CDC was mobilising support for Nigeria while strengthening response efforts in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Kenya. The agency is also maintaining heightened vigilance in Uganda.

He said the outbreak required coordinated action by governments, health agencies and international partners, particularly as concerns grow over cross-border transmission.

Kaseya also highlighted the severity of the situation in the DRC, where he said the case fatality rate was approaching 50 per cent. This figure, along with the reported geographical spread of the outbreak, should be verified against the latest Africa CDC and World Health Organization data before publication.

He reaffirmed Africa CDC’s solidarity with Nigeria, urging development partners to provide the resources needed to strengthen surveillance, contain the infection and prevent further spread.

About the Author

Mirian Gom

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Gom Mirian is a Nigerian journalist and editor at Africa Health Report (AHR), with more than a decade of experience covering health, development, humanitarian issues and public-interest affairs across Nigeria and Africa. She holds a Master’s degree in Economics and has additional training in data analytics, combining evidence-driven reporting with compelling human-centred storytelling. Her work examines the intersection of health, policy, economics, technology and social change, with a particular interest in how global decisions and emerging challenges affect communities across Africa. Her journalism has received professional recognition, including a Nestlé Award nomination for human-interest reporting. Follow her on X @mirian_linus.

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