Nigeria currently has no active Ebola cases following the medical evacuation of the country’s index patient and her husband to Switzerland, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has said.
The patient, Nigeria’s first imported Ebola case, was evacuated on Monday after Nigerian medical personnel stabilised her condition following treatment for the acute phase of the disease. Her husband was also evacuated alongside her.
The WHO Regional Director for Africa, Dr Mohamed Janabi, disclosed this in a post on his official X account, noting that both the patient and her husband are Swiss citizens.
Janabi congratulated the Federal Government, health workers, clinicians, emergency responders and other partners involved in managing the case, describing the outcome as a significant achievement for Nigeria’s public health response.
“On behalf of WHO and all partners, I warmly congratulate the Government of Nigeria, health workers, clinicians, emergency responders and all those involved in the response,” he said.
He added that the successful management of the case demonstrated Africa’s capacity to respond effectively to public health emergencies through coordinated action and collaboration.
“With the evacuation of the patient and her husband, Nigeria currently has no Ebola cases,” Janabi stated.
However, the WHO official stressed that continued vigilance remained essential to prevent further transmission of the virus.
According to him, Nigeria will continue monitoring 52 contacts, while Switzerland will take responsibility for the patient’s continued medical care and the follow-up of her husband, identified as contact number 53.
Janabi commended all those involved in the response, describing the outcome as evidence of African expertise, resilience and leadership in public health.
Despite the evacuation, Nigerian health authorities are expected to sustain contact tracing and surveillance activities to identify any potential infections and prevent further spread of the virus.
