Africa faces 'complex' Ebola outbreak after spread to Nigeria: WHO

The World Health Organization has warned that Africa is facing a complex Ebola outbreak after the virus spread from East Africa to Nigeria, which marks the first case recorded in the west of the continent. According to the South China Morning Post, Nigeria announced an imported case of the Bundibugyo strain, the same strain causing an outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo, which was detected in the wife of a diplomat.

However, Premium Times reports that the WHO and the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention have not received verified information regarding whether the woman traveled to the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Ghana Business News reports that Nigerian authorities confirmed an Ebola case in the Federal Capital Territory on October 20. The news follows reports from Kenya, where an imported case of the Bundibugyo virus from the Democratic Republic of Congo was reported on October 6, 2026, followed by six additional linked cases including infections among healthcare workers.

In response to the cases in Kenya and Nigeria, the Ghanaian Ministry of Health has intensified surveillance, airport screening, and laboratory preparedness at points of entry to prevent the importation of the disease.

Brief written by urgent.news from France 24, Premium Times, South China Morning Post, Ghana Business News — 4 reports on this story. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.