Ebola patient set for evacuation abroad as NCDC traces 53 contacts

Nigeria's only confirmed Ebola patient is expected to be flown out of the country for further treatment early on Monday, a source familiar with the plan told reporters. The patient is a 42-year-old woman.

The source said a medical evacuation aircraft was already waiting at the airport, and that the federal government would announce the move after she had left. Officials have not confirmed the evacuation publicly.

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) said the woman is being treated in isolation and is improving. Her case is caused by the Bundibugyo virus, the agency said.

Contacts under watch

NCDC Director General Dr Jide Idris said 53 primary contacts have been identified and are being monitored for 21 days. They include 44 hospital staff where she is being treated, three health workers who attended to her, three people from the Julius Berger office she visited before falling ill, and three other contacts.

Samples from her husband tested negative, Idris said. Two suspected cases, one in the Federal Capital Territory and one in Rivers State, also came back negative, though follow-up will continue.

Idris said the woman is from Uganda and married to a Swiss national, and that Nigerian officials will meet their Ugandan counterparts online to establish her exact travel details.

He said the case was picked up because healthcare workers noticed symptoms that raised concern. The response is being run through an emergency operations centre led by Health Minister Prof. Ali Pate, with the Department of State Services (DSS) helping to track contacts.

The University of Abuja Teaching Hospital has been designated a special isolation centre, and the patient's premises have been fumigated. Twelve laboratories are being upgraded to test for Ebola.

Money for quarantined contacts

Some contacts in quarantine have complained about upkeep. Idris said the federal government is considering paying ₦100,000 a week for feeding and upkeep of each quarantined contact, as an interim measure, with states expected to take over later.

He urged Nigerians to cooperate with tracing teams and not to stigmatise contacts. "An identified contact does not mean you have Ebola," he said.

The update comes as the West African College of Physicians holds a week-long summit in Abuja from Monday, with Ebola, brain drain and weak health infrastructure on the agenda. More than 1,300 experts are expected. The college said President Bola Tinubu asked its members to help tackle the japa syndrome during a visit to the Villa.

What happens next: Contact monitoring runs for 21 days. The government is expected to speak on the evacuation once the patient has left, and the NCDC is asking anyone with symptoms, or who has been contacted by tracers, to report promptly.