The Presidency has urged Nigerians to remain calm following the detection of an imported Ebola case in the country.
This was just as it assured citizens that the Federal Government has activated measures to contain the virus.
Chief of Staff to the President and Chairman of the Presidential Task Force on Ebola Preparedness, Virus Disease Preparedness and Emerging Public Health Threats, Femi Gbajabiamila, gave the assurance on Wednesday after an emergency meeting of the task force at the State House.
Gbajabiamila said the task force had been working behind the scenes since its inauguration in June 2026, adding that the surveillance measures put in place helped authorities identify the index case.
He disclosed that about 44,000 flights had operated into and out of Nigeria since Ebola preparedness efforts began in June, stressing that the collaboration among the Ministry of Health, the task force and other relevant agencies had strengthened the country’s response capacity.
“It’s very important to note this. Since the issue of Ebola came up in June, there have been about 44,000 flights in and out of Nigeria. So, it’s because of what the Ministry of Health, the task force and all the agencies have been doing. All hands have been on deck,” he was quoted as saying in a statement issued by the president’s special adviser on information and strategy, Bayo Onanuga.
The presidential aide explained that the infected passenger did not initially show symptoms, which emerged four days after the woman arrived in Abuja.
He said the identification process and established health protocols enabled authorities to detect the case, demonstrating the country’s capacity to respond to the outbreak.
Gbajabiamila assured Nigerians that the task force would strengthen existing protocols and ensure stricter enforcement of preventive measures.
“The Task Force is on top of it. NCDC is on top of it; everyone is on deck. We must build community trust and avoid panic, but it’s also important to state clearly that this is a collaborative effort between the government and the people,” he said.
He urged Nigerians to cooperate with health authorities and comply with public health directives to prevent further transmission.
The Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Professor Mohammed Ali Pate, also assured citizens that Nigeria had the necessary health personnel and surveillance systems to respond to the outbreak.
Pate said government agencies, private hospitals, immigration and aviation authorities, the Ministry of Interior and health officials across different levels of government had put response mechanisms in place.
He disclosed that authorities were conducting contact tracing and isolating people who had been in contact with the imported index case.
“We have been conducting contact tracing diligently and isolating those contacts of the index imported case in this country. We will continue to do that,” the minister said.
According to him, the Federal Government, working with the World Health Organisation (WHO), the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) and the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC), had activated an incident management system to coordinate the response.
Pate added that treatment facilities had also activated their response capabilities, while states were mobilising resources to support containment efforts.
He said the government was working to contain the case but warned that authorities would not relax their efforts.
“Our population should respect public health directives,” he said.
The minister also cautioned Nigerians against spreading misinformation and unverified reports capable of triggering unnecessary fear.
He expressed confidence in the experience of Nigerian public health professionals, noting that some had successfully responded to the Ebola outbreak in 2014 and assisted other countries.
“In addition to our exceptional public health physicians who had successfully tamed this virus in 2014, and had contributed to other countries, we are confident that if we continue in this direction, we will emerge out of this crisis in a much stronger place,” Pate said.
He added that the WHO and Africa CDC were working closely with Nigerian authorities to support the response.
The emergency meeting was attended by several government officials and public health stakeholders, including the Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Immigration Service, Kemi Nandap; Managing Director of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), Bunmi Kuku; and the WHO representative, Pavel Ursu.
Other participants included the Special Regional Representative to the Director-General of Africa CDC, Dr Aliko Ahmed; the Federal Capital Territory Mandate Secretary for Health and Environment, Dr Dolapo Fasawe; and the Chairman of the Medical Advisory Committee at the State House Medical Centre, Dr Victoria Ogala.
The Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Olajumoke Oduwole; Lagos State Commissioner for Health, Professor Akin Abayomi; and Director of Operations, Licensing and Training Standards at the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority, Captain Donald Spiff, also participated in the meeting virtually.
