The United Nations has expressed confidence in Nigeria’s ability to contain its newly confirmed Ebola case, pledging support to prevent further spread of the disease.
The UN Secretary-General’s Spokesperson, Stéphane Dujarric, 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 Ebola Bundibugyo virus in Nigeria, the fifth country to report a case in the current outbreak.
However, he commended Nigerian health authorities for their swift response and contact-tracing efforts following confirmation of the infection.
“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.
The spokesperson acknowledged that the detection of the virus in another country had raised concerns about its potential spread beyond areas already affected.
“Yeah, I mean, it’s of course concerning that there is a case in a new country,” Dujarric said.
He noted, however, that Nigerian authorities had commenced contact tracing to identify and monitor people who might have been exposed to the infected patient.
Asked by NAN whether the UN was concerned that the outbreak could spread to more countries or persist for another year, Dujarric emphasised the need for international cooperation.
He urged countries to comply with international health regulations and work closely with the World Health Organisation (WHO) to contain the outbreak.
“It is also incumbent that countries work together, follow international health regulations, work with the WHO,” he said.
Dujarric explained that the 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 the support available to Nigeria, the spokesperson reaffirmed the UN’s readiness to assist the Federal Government.
“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 maintaining direct communication with national health authorities to coordinate an appropriate response.
The UN’s assurance followed Nigeria’s confirmation on Tuesday of an imported Ebola Bundibugyo case involving a woman who had recently travelled to Uganda.
According to the WHO, the patient developed symptoms on Oct. 7, sought medical attention in Abuja on Oct. 11 and tested positive for the virus on Oct. 20.
The UN health agency said the patient was receiving treatment in isolation, while Nigerian authorities had identified 44 contacts for monitoring and further investigation.
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The case comes amid an outbreak that began in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) in May and subsequently spread internationally, raising concerns about cross-border transmission.
The WHO’s latest situation report recorded 9,637 confirmed infections and 4,646 deaths in the DRC as of Oct. 19, highlighting the severity of the regional public health emergency.
