Nigeria Confirms First Ebola Case in Decade as Swiss Ministry Cites Uganda Stay

Nigeria has confirmed its first Ebola case in more than ten years, with health authorities currently tracking the infection path of a Swiss diplomat’s wife. The patient, born in Uganda, is based in Abuja with her husband. Nigerian Health Minister Muhammad Ali Pate stated on Thursday that the case is contained and contact tracing is underway. He noted the goal is to prevent the virus from spreading into local communities.

The Swiss foreign ministry announced on Friday that the woman likely contracted the virus in Uganda. The ministry said she did not travel to the Democratic Republic of Congo, where the outbreak began. Instead, officials believe she caught the infection while traveling with her husband in Uganda. This account conflicts with earlier reports from Ugandan authorities, who said the woman had visited eastern DR Congo.

A Ugandan government spokesperson told Reuters on Thursday that Uganda had no recorded Ebola cases at the time. The spokesperson said the country would release public information if that changed. Uganda previously reported cases in May and June. The World Health Organization declared the country Ebola-free in August. The discrepancy complicates efforts to contain an outbreak that has now reached a fourth African country.

The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention is examining a potential link to a patient in Kenya. Dr Wessam Mankoula, the organization's head of emergency preparedness, said both individuals passed through Uganda's Entebbe airport on October 3. Catherine Smallwood, a WHO Ebola incident manager in DR Congo, noted that staff there had no data indicating the Nigerian patient visited the country. She said officials must compare the timing of the airport overlap with the onset of symptoms to determine the source of infection.

Marion Koopmans, a Dutch virologist on the WHO emergency committee, expressed skepticism about the airport connection. She described the theory as very speculative without evidence that the two shared a specific space. She added that random presence at a large airport does not meet the epidemiological standards for a confirmed link.

The current outbreak is caused by the Bundibugyo virus, for which no approved treatment or vaccine exists. First announced on May 15, the epidemic has infected more than 9,500 people and killed nearly half of them. It is the largest and deadliest outbreak in DR Congo's history. It is the second largest globally, following the 2014 to 2016 West Africa epidemic, which infected more than 28,600 people and killed more than 11,000.

Melaku Yirga, vice-president for Africa at Prosper Global, emphasized the need for speed in cross-border information sharing. He said frontline health workers and local organizations need resources to respond quickly. Confirmed cases in Kenya and Nigeria demonstrate that countries must coordinate closely to manage the spread.