The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) has disclosed that Nigeria has recorded more than 65,000 suspected cases of cholera and over 10,000 confirmed cases of diphtheria in 2026, as it warned that the two outbreaks remain a major public health concern.
The Director-General of NCDC, Dr. Jide Idris, disclosed this on Friday in Abuja at a press briefing on the current situation, response and actions required to control the outbreaks.
He said the cholera cases were recorded across 35 states and approximately 195 Local Government Areas (LGAs), while diphtheria cases remained concentrated in a few states, particularly Kano, Borno and Bauchi.
The DG said there were encouraging signs in the response to both diseases, with weekly cholera cases declining considerably from the peak recorded earlier in the season and the proportion of cases resulting in death lower than at the same period last year.
He, however, warned that the improvement should not lead to complacency, stressing that cholera transmission was still ongoing.
“Our experience in recent years shows that cholera transmission can peak between late August and October. We are also still in the rainy season, and flooding remains an important risk because it can contaminate water sources and overwhelm sanitation systems,” he said.
The NCDC boss said the country must consolidate the gains recorded so far and prevent another increase in cases.
He identified unsafe water, open defecation, damaged water distribution systems, poor hygiene infrastructure and inadequate sanitation in schools, markets and other public institutions as some of the major factors driving cholera transmission.
He said although early treatment had improved outcomes, particularly in Borno State where the majority of this year’s cholera cases had occurred, treatment alone could not end the outbreak.
“While treatment saves lives, we cannot treat our way out of cholera,” he said, calling for sustained action on water, sanitation and hygiene, environmental health and community behaviour.
On diphtheria, the NCDC DG said the country had recorded more than 10,000 confirmed cases this year.
Although the case fatality rate had declined considerably compared with the same period last year, he said the continuing burden remained a concern.
He identified inadequate vaccination coverage as a major driver of diphtheria transmission, noting that too many children remained unvaccinated or incompletely vaccinated.
He said vaccine hesitancy, insecurity, hard-to-reach communities, displacement and population movement had made it difficult to reach every child requiring protection.
“Diphtheria is vaccine-preventable. Bringing transmission under control therefore requires improved vaccination coverage and reaching every eligible child who has missed a vaccine dose,” he said.
The agency said it was coordinating the national response to both outbreaks with state governments and partners, while strengthening surveillance and laboratory capacity and supporting healthcare workers with case management and infection prevention and control.
The agency called on state and local governments to intensify their response by identifying communities at greatest risk and directing available human, material and financial resources to areas with critical gaps.
It also urged governments to identify communities with low vaccination coverage and ensure that children who missed routine doses are reached.
NCDC stressed that federal government intervention alone would not be enough to control the outbreaks, noting that many of the measures required must be implemented at state, local government, health facility and community levels.
The agency advised Nigerians to ensure that drinking water is safe, maintain clean surroundings, use proper sanitation facilities, avoid open defecation and practise regular handwashing with soap and clean running water.
It also urged people to properly prepare and protect food from contamination.
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