Reported by: Ijeoma G | Edited by: Oravbiere Osayomore Promise.
The Federal Government is considering imposing flight restrictions on countries battling the Ebola outbreak and enforcing mandatory isolation for passengers displaying symptoms, as part of a coordinated strategy to prevent the virus from entering Nigeria. The disclosure was made after a high-level emergency meeting convened in Victoria Island, Lagos, on Thursday, 28 May 2026, led by the Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, and attended by key officials including the Director-General of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC), Dr. Jide Idris; the Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo; and the Lagos State Commissioner for Health, Prof. Akin Abayomi. The meeting was called to review the nation’s Ebola preparedness and response framework following a surge in cases in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Uganda, where the World Health Organisation (WHO) has declared the outbreak a Public Health Emergency of International Concern.
Gbajabiamila, who briefed journalists after the session, stated that President Bola Tinubu has been fully briefed on the deteriorating health situation in Central and East Africa. “We have a health scare, which is Ebola, and we all know what happened the last time. The cases are getting worse internationally and worldwide, and we don’t want to leave anything to chance,” he said. The Chief of Staff outlined that government officials examined several response options, including the possibility of restricting flights from countries of interest, isolating travellers who display symptoms consistent with Ebola, and designating cargo terminals to handle passengers arriving from high-risk regions. “We looked at the issue of restricting flights from countries of interest. We looked at the possibility of isolating passengers who may exhibit symptoms of Ebola,” Gbajabiamila explained, adding that authorities are also preparing protocols to prevent travellers from slipping through the cracks.
The Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, confirmed that all points of entry into the country—airports, seaports, and land borders—would be placed under stricter surveillance. The Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) is to work closely with the NCDC to improve early detection and rapid response capabilities. Meanwhile, the NCDC’s Director-General, Dr. Jide Idris, delivered a stark warning about the nature of the threat, noting that the current outbreak is caused by the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola, for which there is currently no approved vaccine or specific treatment. “This particular virus has no treatment, no vaccines. So it’s the public health measures that need to be done—isolation, quick detection, public enlightenment, infection prevention and control,” Idris said. He disclosed that preparedness plans have already been activated across all 36 states, with healthcare workers placed on high alert and public awareness campaigns set to intensify.
The NCDC has released a nationwide public health advisory, dated 27 May 2026, warning that Nigeria faces a high risk of Ebola importation due to increasing regional transmission, international travel, porous borders, and the similarity between early Ebola symptoms and common febrile illnesses such as malaria and Lassa fever. The agency has classified Lagos, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Rivers, Kano, Enugu, Borno, Akwa Ibom, Cross River, Taraba, and Adamawa as high-risk states due to their international airports, seaports, and heavy human traffic. A moderate-risk category includes Ogun, Nasarawa, Kaduna, Plateau, Kogi, Niger, Jigawa, Katsina, Bauchi, Ebonyi, Abia, and Bayelsa. The NCDC stressed that while no confirmed case has been recorded in Nigeria, a dynamic risk assessment conducted after the WHO declaration indicated that “the overall risk of importation of the disease into Nigeria has been assessed as HIGH.”
According to the WHO, the outbreak has rapidly escalated, with a total of 1,049 suspected and confirmed cases reported between the DRC and Uganda, resulting in at least 241 deaths. The DRC has recorded 17 confirmed deaths and 223 suspected deaths, while Uganda has reported seven confirmed cases and one death. The virus has spread across 13 health zones, with WHO warning of significant gaps in contact tracing and cross-border transmission. Security incidents and community resistance have further hampered response efforts in the DRC’s Ituri province. The NCDC noted that the Bundibugyo strain differs from the more common Zaire strain for which vaccines and antibody treatments exist, making early detection and aggressive supportive care critical. Health workers were urged not to wait for bleeding symptoms before suspecting Ebola in any patient with compatible symptoms and relevant travel history.
The government’s consideration of flight restrictions, while still under review, is a key element of the proactive strategy. Gbajabiamila stated that prevention remains the primary focus, and that any decision on flight bans would be guided by public health considerations. “We believe prevention is better than cure, and where some passengers slip through the cracks, then we must have ways of dealing with situations such as that,” he said. The Federal Government’s alert has revived memories of the 2014 Ebola outbreak, when Nigeria successfully contained the virus after an infected Liberian-American diplomat flew into Lagos, leading to 19 infections and eight deaths. The country was later praised by the WHO for its effective containment.
As the government continues to weigh its options, including potential travel advisories and enhanced screening, the NCDC has activated its National Emergency Operations Centre in alert mode to coordinate nationwide response efforts. State governments have been directed to submit readiness reports within 72 hours, identify isolation centres, and intensify public sensitisation campaigns to counter misinformation. With no approved vaccine for the Bundibugyo strain, Nigeria’s defence against the virus hinges on rigorous surveillance, rapid detection, and strict public health protocols. The message from the high-level meeting is clear: Nigeria is not waiting for a case to appear before taking action.
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