WHO To Certify Nigeria Ebola-Free After 42 Days — Health Minister

The Federal Government has said Nigeria could be declared free of the current Ebola outbreak by December 7, 2026, if no further confirmed or probable cases are detected following the evacuation of the country’s index patient to Switzerland.

The Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof Muhammad Pate, disclosed this via his X account on Monday.

Pate explained that Nigeria must complete a 42-day monitoring period without new cases before the outbreak can be declared over under World Health Organisation (WHO) criteria.

“Following the imported Ebola index patient’s medical evacuation from Nigeria today, 26 October, If no further confirmed or probable cases are detected, Nigeria could progress towards declaring this outbreak over under

@WHO criteria, potentially as early as 7 December 2026,” Pate said.

The minister said the date remained provisional, pending validation of the countdown by the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) and the WHO.

He added that any new confirmed or probable case would require the 42-day countdown to begin afresh.

“This date remains provisional, subject to@NCDCgov and WHO validating the 42-day countdown. Any further case would require a fresh countdown in accordance with those criteria,” he said.

The minister’s statement comes hours after the WHO Regional Director for Africa, Prof Mohamed Janabi, announced that Nigeria currently had no Ebola cases following the medical evacuation of the infected woman and her husband to Switzerland.

Janabi had said the patient was clinically stable after Nigerian medical personnel successfully managed her through the acute phase of the illness.

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The woman, Nigeria’s first imported Ebola case in more than a decade, was evacuated from Abuja on Monday alongside her husband, who has remained asymptomatic.

Although the evacuation means Nigeria currently has no known active Ebola case, health authorities have maintained that surveillance and contact tracing must continue to prevent further transmission.

Pate said the government’s immediate priorities remained the active monitoring of identified contacts, prompt investigation of suspected cases and strengthened preparedness across health facilities.“Our immediate priorities remain active monitoring of all identified contacts, prompt investigation of alerts and strengthened readiness across our health facilities,” Pate said.

He noted that response teams were working with the Federal Capital Territory Administration, state health authorities and development partners to contain the infection and prevent community transmission.

The minister urged Nigerians to remain calm, cooperate with contact-tracing teams and obtain verified information from the NCDC and the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare.

Nigeria confirmed the imported Ebola case on October 20, 2026, after laboratory tests detected the Bundibugyo strain of the virus in the 42-year-old woman, who had travelled to Nigeria from Uganda through Addis Ababa on October 3.

The NCDC had earlier identified 53 contacts linked to the case, including healthcare workers, domestic staff and the patient’s husband.

Following the evacuation, Nigerian authorities are expected to continue monitoring 52 contacts, while Swiss authorities take responsibility for the patient’s continued treatment and her husband’s follow-up.

The WHO’s 42-day period for declaring an Ebola outbreak over is based on twice the maximum incubation period of the virus. The period allows authorities to monitor for new infections after the last confirmed case has recovered and completed the required follow-up procedures, or died.

Until the criteria are met, Nigeria’s public health response and surveillance measures remain in place.

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