The Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, has directed the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) to instruct local and international airlines to place 46 individuals who had contact with Nigeria’s index Ebola patient on a strict 21-day no-fly list.
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Keyamo issued the directive following a high-level virtual meeting on Wednesday with the Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Professor Muhammad Ali Pate, aimed at activating containment protocols against the virus.
The index case was officially confirmed on October 20, 2026, marking Nigeria’s first recorded case of Ebola virus disease since the 2014 outbreak. Laboratory results confirmed the patient was infected with the Bundibugyo strain of the virus.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the patient recently traveled to Nigeria from Uganda. She began exhibiting symptoms on October 7, four days after her arrival, before seeking medical care at a private health facility in Abuja on October 11.
Reports from the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) indicate that the patient was initially treated for malaria-like symptoms before her declining condition and travel history prompted medical staff to conduct specialized testing.
The Director of Public Health Laboratory Services at the NCDC, Olajumoke Babatunde, formally confirmed the specific strain during an emergency incident management meeting in Abuja on Wednesday, as contact tracing and containment operations intensify nationwide.
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