Nigeria confirms an imported Ebola case as WHO warns of a "more complex" outbreak

As of 8:12 a.m. ET, Friday, Oct. 23, 2026

Nigeria has confirmed one imported case of Ebola caused by the Bundibugyo virus in the Federal Capital Territory, the World Health Organization's Africa office said, making it the fifth country to detect the virus since an outbreak was declared in the Democratic Republic of the Congo on May 15.

The patient is a woman with recent travel history to Uganda, the WHO said, citing Nigeria's health ministry. Her symptoms began Oct. 7, four days after she arrived in Nigeria; she sought care at a private health facility in Abuja on Oct. 11, and a laboratory test confirmed the virus on Oct. 20. She is in isolation and receiving care, the WHO said.

So far, 44 contacts have been identified and are being monitored, according to the WHO. Kenya has reported nine cases linked to an imported case in recent weeks, the agency said.

"We are facing a more complex outbreak landscape," Mohamed Janabi, the WHO's regional director for Africa, told an online briefing on Thursday, Oct. 22, AFP reported.

Nigeria's health minister, Muhammad Ali Pate, said Thursday that an undisclosed number of "high risk" contacts had been quarantined in a facility, according to AFP. "It is contained, so far, the imported case. We have no evidence it has gone into the communities," Pate said, AFP reported.

The WHO said it advises against any restriction of travel to, or trade with, affected countries. There is no vaccine or specific treatment for the Bundibugyo strain, AFP reported.

What is not known

Investigations are ongoing to establish the likely source of the woman's infection and her full travel and exposure history, the WHO said.