Over 65,000 suspected cholera cases recorded in 35 states – NCDC

N****igeria has recorded more than 65,000 suspected cases of cholera across 35 states and about 195 local government areas so far this year, the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention has said.

The Director-General of the NCDC, Dr Jide Idris, disclosed this in a situation report obtained by our correspondent on Friday.

Idris, however, said the country had recorded a substantial decline in weekly cholera cases from the peak earlier in the year, while the proportion of reported cases resulting in death had also fallen considerably compared with the same period last year.

He cautioned that the decline did not mean the outbreak was over.

“The encouraging news is that weekly cases have declined substantially from the peak recorded earlier in the season. The proportion of reported cases resulting in death is also considerably lower than it was at the same time last year,” Idris said.

“This is important progress. But I want to be very clear: the outbreak is not over.”

The NCDC chief also disclosed that the country had recorded more than 10,000 confirmed cases of diphtheria this year, although the proportion of confirmed cases resulting in death had declined considerably compared with the same period in 2025.

He identified Kano, Borno and Bauchi as among the states carrying a substantial burden of the disease.

Idris attributed the continued spread of diphtheria partly to low vaccination coverage, noting that too many children remained either unvaccinated or incompletely vaccinated.

“The central issue is that too many children remain unvaccinated or incompletely vaccinated,” he said.

He added that vaccine hesitancy, insecurity, hard-to-reach communities, displacement and population movement had made it difficult for health authorities to reach every child requiring protection.

“It is important to emphasise again that diphtheria is vaccine-preventable. Bringing transmission under control therefore requires improved vaccination coverage and reaching every eligible child who has missed a vaccine dose,” Idris said.

According to him, the NCDC and other government agencies are implementing interventions to contain both outbreaks, including strengthening surveillance and laboratory capacity, supporting healthcare workers on case management and infection prevention and control, and engaging affected communities.

He said National Rapid Response Teams had also been deployed to affected states when required to support investigations and response activities.

On cholera, Idris said the response was focused on ensuring early access to treatment while addressing the water, sanitation and hygiene conditions driving transmission.

“In Borno, our teams have investigated transmission sources and assessed water supply points, helping to identify gaps in water quality, sanitation and chlorination,” he said.

“In Bauchi, working with the State Government, oral rehydration points were established, treatment capacity was strengthened and active case search was intensified.”

He added that oral cholera vaccination had been implemented in high-burden areas, while water chlorination, rehabilitation of water sources and hygiene promotion continued in affected communities.

On diphtheria, the NCDC director-general said the response was centred on improving vaccination coverage, rapidly identifying cases and ensuring appropriate treatment.

“Reactive vaccination is being carried out in affected areas, while essential treatment and laboratory commodities continue to be provided,” he said.

Idris stressed that the Federal Government could not contain the outbreaks alone, saying state and local governments, health facilities and communities had important roles to play.

“These efforts are ongoing, but Federal action alone will not bring these outbreaks under control. Many of the interventions that will make the greatest difference must happen in our States, Local Government Areas, health facilities, communities and homes,” he said.

He therefore called on state and local governments to intensify their response, particularly in communities at greatest risk.

Idris urged the authorities to identify critical gaps and direct available human, material and financial resources, including isolation spaces for surge capacity, to areas where they were most needed.

For cholera, Idris said state and local authorities needed to improve access to safe water and sanitation, strengthen water-quality monitoring, repair critical water infrastructure and tackle open defecation.

He also called for high-risk Local Government Areas to have functional treatment centres and rapid response capacity.

“For diphtheria, the priority is to improve vaccination coverage, particularly in affected, hard-to-reach and underserved communities.

“This means strengthening routine immunisation and targeted vaccination, identifying communities with low vaccination coverage, and reachinging children who have missed their routine doses,” he said.

The NCDC boss further urged state and local governments to provide the personnel, materials, funding, isolation spaces and logistics required to sustain the interventions and bring transmission under control.

Diphtheria is a vaccine-preventable bacterial disease that can cause severe respiratory illness and complications. The NCDC notes that inadequate vaccination coverage is a major driver of outbreaks, while cholera is strongly associated with unsafe water, poor sanitation and inadequate hygiene.

Nigeria has continued to strengthen surveillance and response mechanisms for both diseases, with the NCDC deploying rapid response teams and supporting laboratory, case-management and vaccination activities in affected states.