The United Nations has expressed confidence in Nigeria’s ability to contain its newly confirmed Ebola Bundibugyo case, as health authorities identify 44 contacts for monitoring following the detection of the imported infection.
Stéphane Dujarric, spokesperson for the UN secretary-general, gave the assurance on Wednesday while responding to questions from the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) at the UN headquarters in New York.
Dujarric said the UN was concerned about the detection of the virus in Nigeria, the fifth country to report a case during the current outbreak, but expressed confidence in the capacity of Nigerian health authorities to prevent further spread.
“We have full confidence in the ability and the capacity of the Nigerian Government’s health authorities to deal with this single case,” he said.
He commended the response by Nigerian authorities, particularly their efforts to trace people who may have had contact with the infected patient.
“Yeah, I mean, it’s of course concerning that there is a case in a new country,” Dujarric said, while acknowledging the risk of the outbreak spreading beyond countries already affected.
Asked whether the UN was concerned that the outbreak could spread to more countries or persist for another year, he called for stronger international cooperation and compliance with established public health rules.
“It is also incumbent that countries work together, follow international health regulations, work with the WHO,” he said.
Dujarric said the World Health Organisation (WHO) was established to help countries respond to public health emergencies of this nature.
“This is why the WHO was created, to help to deal with these issues, and I know they’re very much on top of it,” he added.
On support for Nigeria, the UN spokesperson reaffirmed the organisation’s readiness to assist the Federal Government in containing the infection.
“We are, as always, ready to assist the Government of Nigeria in any way possible,” he said.
He also expressed confidence that WHO officials in Nigeria were in direct contact with national health authorities to coordinate the response.
Nigeria confirmed the imported Ebola Bundibugyo case on Tuesday involving a woman with a recent travel history to Uganda.
According to the WHO, the patient developed symptoms on October 7, sought medical attention in Abuja on October 11 and tested positive for the virus on October 20.
The patient was receiving treatment in isolation, while Nigerian authorities had identified 44 contacts for monitoring and further investigation, the UN health agency said.
The case has raised concerns about cross-border transmission, as the outbreak, which began in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) in May, has spread internationally.
WHO’s latest situation report recorded 9,637 confirmed infections and 4,646 deaths in the DRC as of October 19, highlighting the scale of the regional health emergency.
The detection of the infection in Nigeria has placed renewed focus on surveillance, contact tracing and coordination between national health authorities and international health agencies to limit further transmission.
While the UN expressed confidence in Nigeria’s response, the monitoring of identified contacts remains a key part of efforts to establish whether the virus has spread beyond the confirmed case.
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