The World Health Organisation (WHO) has clarified that Nigeria has not been officially declared Ebola-free, warning against misleading reports suggesting the country has been cleared of the disease.
The clarification followed the evacuation of Nigeria’s index Ebola patient to Switzerland on Monday for further medical treatment.
Although the evacuation has left Nigeria with no confirmed active Ebola cases, the WHO stressed that the development does not amount to an official declaration that the country is free of the disease.
Mohamed Janabi, WHO Regional Director for Africa, had earlier stated that Nigeria currently had no Ebola cases following the evacuation of the patient and her husband.
However, in a subsequent post on X, the organisation cautioned against interpreting the statement as confirmation that Nigeria was Ebola-free.
“WHO has not declared Nigeria Ebola-free. Nigeria currently has no confirmed case of Ebola following the medical evacuation of the index patient to Switzerland,” the organisation said.
The WHO disclosed that health authorities were continuing to monitor 52 contacts who might have been exposed to the virus.
It explained that, under the International Health Regulations, a country can be declared Ebola-free only after 42 days have elapsed since the last confirmed case tests negative twice for the virus.
The organisation said the 42-day monitoring period would also apply to Nigeria following the evacuation of the confirmed patient.
After the period, heightened surveillance would continue to ensure that any potential new infections were detected promptly.
The WHO also urged the media organisation responsible for the misleading headline to retract and correct the report, describing it as a misinterpretation of the regional director’s earlier statement.
The clarification comes amid ongoing efforts by Nigerian health authorities to contain the outbreak and prevent further transmission.