Nigeria At Risk Of Importing Ebola Virus, NCDC Warns

Following the outbreak of Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) in Ugandan, the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has alerted that Nigeria is at high risk of Importation of the disease, based on available data and risk assessment conducted.

The director-general of NCDC, Dr Ifedayo Adetifa, who disclosed this yesterday, said the risk is due to the large volume of air travel between Nigeria and Uganda and the mixing of passengers, especially at the regional travel hubs of Nairobi, Addis Ababa, and Kigali airports.

He said the outputs from the risk assessment are being used to initiate preparedness activities in-country, adding that several measures have been put in place to prevent and mitigate the impact of a potential EVD outbreak in Nigeria.

“NCDC has been aware of the ongoing outbreak of the Sudan strain Ebola virus disease (EVD) in Uganda since it was first officially declared on 20th September 2022.

“As of 29th October, 2022, the Uganda Ministry of Health had reported 128 confirmed cases and 34 deaths.

“The NCDC, through the National Emerging Viral Haemorrhagic Disease Technical Working Group, met on the 26th of September 2022 to assess the risk of importation of EVD to Nigeria and the potential impact to inform in-country preparedness activities.

“Based on available data and risk assessment conducted, Nigeria is at HIGH risk of importation of the virus”, he explained.

On the symptoms, Adetifa said symptoms may appear anywhere from two to 21 days after exposure to the virus but are typically eight to 10 days on average, adding that the symptoms include fever, fatigue, muscle pain, headache, sore throat, vomiting, diarrhoea, rash, impaired kidney and liver function, internal and external bleeding.