World Health Organisation (WHO) has stated that Nigeria currently faces a relatively low risk of Ebola outbreak when compared with countries such as the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Uganda, where active cases have been confirmed.
This was disclosed on Tuesday by the Executive Director of the WHO Health Emergencies Programme, Dr Chikwe Ihekweazu, during an interview on Arise Television’s Morning Show.
Ihekweazu explained that Uganda remains the only country outside the DRC that has reported confirmed Ebola infections, noting that Nigeria’s situation is presently under control.
“Uganda is the only country with confirmed Ebola cases outside the Democratic Republic of Congo. Nigeria’s risk is low,” he said.
However, he cautioned that the outbreak remains a serious global health threat that demands coordinated international response, especially as it has already crossed borders.
He added that the situation had reached a level significant enough to be declared a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC), a rare designation used for outbreaks with major global implications.
According to him, this is only the ninth time in history that the WHO has issued such a declaration, while Ebola itself has now triggered the classification for the third time.
The former Director-General of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) also revealed that over 300 confirmed Ebola cases have been recorded in the DRC, which remains the epicentre of the outbreak.
He further noted that the epidemic in the region has already led to hundreds of deaths, with reports indicating at least 246 fatalities across affected areas in the DRC and neighbouring Uganda, according to Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC).
Ebola is a highly infectious and often deadly viral disease transmitted through direct contact with infected bodily fluids or contaminated materials. The disease has caused multiple outbreaks across Africa over the years.
In response to the spread, authorities in the DRC recently restricted operations at Bunia Airport in the eastern part of the country, allowing only humanitarian and medical flights as part of containment efforts.