The Federal Government on Thursday said it has quarantined high-risk contacts of the confirmed Ebola case in the FCT, isolated other contacts, and intensified preparedness across states and health facilities to prevent a wider outbreak.
The Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Ali Pate, said the index patient is showing significant signs of recovery, adding that there is currently no evidence of community transmission.
Prof. Pate, who spoke at a briefing in Abuja, said contact tracing has covered the hospital where the patient was treated after developing symptoms, her domestic contacts, and a private medical facility she visited earlier. He disclosed that high-risk contacts have been moved to a designated quarantine facility while others are under active monitoring.
He said the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) has activated its incident management system in collaboration with the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA).
“I spoke with the clinicians today, and I understand that the laboratory results show significant improvement. There is a possibility that she will recover fully. However, we cannot take anything for granted. We currently have one confirmed case, and our priority is to contain it and prevent transmission,” Pate said.
The Minister however did not disclose the number of high-risk contacts in quarantine or whether any of the 46 identified contacts have tested positive.
The Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, on Wednesday directed the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) to place the 46 contacts on a no-fly list – comprising 44 persons who had contact with the patient at the hospital and two domestic staff. He also directed the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) to notify domestic and international airlines.
Keyamo said the measure is to prevent air travel during the incubation period, while efforts are ongoing to isolate the contacts. He also ordered heightened surveillance at international airports, including temperature checks, travel history screening, digital health declarations and stronger coordination with public health authorities.
Chairman of the Presidential Task Force on Ebola Preparedness and Emerging Public Health Threats and Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, said Nigeria’s surveillance system enabled early detection of the case, noting that the patient was asymptomatic on arrival in Abuja on October 3 via Ethiopian Airlines from Uganda and only developed symptoms four days later.
Meanwhile, the Director-General of Africa CDC, Dr. Jean Kaseya, said the patient was born in Uganda and called for full disclosure of her travel history to determine where she contracted the virus. He said she had travelled to Uganda where she spent some days before her husband joined her before returning to Abuja. Uganda’s Director-General of Health Services, Dr. Charles Olaro, however maintained that transiting through Uganda does not confirm infection was contracted there, as the patient had also travelled to eastern Democratic Republic of Congo for business.
Dr. Kaseya explained that there is currently no licensed vaccine for the Bundibugyo strain responsible for the outbreak, though clinical trials of candidate vaccines, including one manufactured in Egypt, have commenced. He decried inadequate global investment in vaccines for diseases predominantly affecting Africa.
Renowned virologist, Prof. Oyewale Tomori, called for full transparency from government, warning that piecemeal information could fuel rumours and erode public confidence. He urged clearer details on the patient’s movements, extent of contact tracing, and sample handling, while recalling lessons from the 2014 Ebola outbreak.
Across the South-East, Abia, Enugu, Anambra and Ebonyi states have intensified surveillance, reactivated Public Health Emergency Operations Centres, placed rapid response teams on standby and stepped up preparedness at airports, motor parks and hospitals. Anambra said it is monitoring 40 persons of interest, with 33 cleared and 7 still under follow-up.
Prof. Pate urged calm, advised Nigerians to practice hand hygiene, avoid contact with blood and body fluids of suspected cases, and rely only on verified information from public health authorities. He stressed that Ebola is not airborne but transmitted through direct contact with infected body fluids, adding that Nigeria has the experience to contain the outbreak.