ABUJA, Nigeria – Nigeria’s confirmed Ebola virus case is genetically similar to Kenya’s first imported case, with genomic sequencing revealing only one mutation between the viruses, Health Minister Muhammad Pate has said.
Pate disclosed the findings on Friday during a briefing at the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare in Abuja. Researchers from the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) and the Institute of Genomics and Global Health at Redeemer’s University, Ede, Osun State, conducted the analysis under virologist Christian Happi.
“Based on the genomic analysis, there is no evidence of travel of that index case in Kenya that links it to Nigeria, but the viruses are appearing to be related,” Pate said.
The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) is investigating whether the patients had contact with shared equipment or other possible sources of exposure at Entebbe International Airport in Uganda, where both reportedly transited on October 3.
Pate said Nigeria had recorded one confirmed case, with authorities continuing contact tracing, quarantine measures and testing. He urged Nigerians to remain vigilant without panicking, assuring the public that the government was working to prevent community transmission.
The minister said authorities were strengthening infection prevention and control in healthcare facilities and preparing health workers to identify and manage suspected cases. He also urged hospitals to report suspected infections promptly.
Pate advised Nigerians to practise regular handwashing, maintain good hygiene and rely on verified information from the NCDC, the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, the World Health Organisation and Africa CDC.
He added that Ebola was not known to spread through the air and was transmitted primarily through direct contact with infected people, their bodily fluids or contaminated materials.
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