Nigeria has confirmed an imported case of Ebola Bundibugyo virus disease in Abuja, marking the country’s first Ebola infection in approximately a decade.
The patient is a woman who had recently travelled from Uganda, according to the World Health Organization.
Her symptoms began on 7 October, four days after she arrived in Nigeria. She sought treatment at a private health facility in Abuja on 11 October, but Ebola was not confirmed until laboratory testing on 20 October.
The interval between the beginning of her illness and confirmation of Ebola has raised concern because infected people can expose healthcare workers, family members and others before the disease is recognised.
Nigerian authorities had identified 44 contacts for monitoring when WHO issued its initial announcement. Contact tracing and investigation of the woman’s movements and possible exposure are continuing.
WHO describes the Nigerian case as imported. Investigators have not yet publicly established the exact location or circumstances in which she became infected.
Nigeria is now the fifth country to detect Bundibugyo virus since the current outbreak was declared in the Democratic Republic of the Congo on 15 May 2026.
The wider outbreak has become a major regional health emergency. WHO’s 19 October situation report described continuing transmission across multiple areas of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and cases spreading internationally.
Bundibugyo virus is one of the viruses capable of causing Ebola disease. Transmission occurs primarily through direct contact with infected bodily fluids rather than ordinary casual contact.
WHAT WE KNOW: Nigeria has one confirmed imported case. Contact tracing is underway. The patient’s precise source of infection remains under investigation.
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