HomeNews‎‎ALARMING: Fatalities Rise Six Years After NCDC Declared Emergency On Lassa Fever

‎‎ALARMING: Fatalities Rise Six Years After NCDC Declared Emergency On Lassa Fever

‎On January 22, 2019, the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control declared Lassa fever a public health emergency, following a spike in confirmed cases and rising fatalities across several states.

‎The designation, which should have marked a turning point in the country’s handling of the viral haemorrhagic fever, came with expectations, with many Nigerians hoping that such classification would trigger swift, coordinated national action, backed by sustained political will and funding.

‎Many had hoped that the emergency classification would move Lassa fever out of the shadows and place it firmly on the front burner of national health priorities.

‎But six years later, findings by DECENCY GLOBAL NEWS reveal that Lassa fever, far from being controlled, remains entrenched and deadly.

‎The virus has become an annual visitor, recurring with ruthless consistency, especially during Nigeria’s dry season. Yet, the government’s response continues to be sluggish, underfunded, and mostly reactive.

‎In 2025 alone, Nigeria recorded over 700 confirmed cases and more than 140 deaths across 18 states within just the first half of the year.

DECENCY GLOBAL NEWS observed that what was supposed to be the beginning of a coordinated, data-driven, and well-funded national strategy has instead become a case study of missed opportunities, fragmented interventions, and policy fatigue.

‎Regular outbreaks

‎According to the World Health Organisation, Lassa fever is an acute viral haemorrhagic fever caused by the Lassa virus. The natural carrier of the virus is the multimammate rat, but the disease is also spread through human-to-human transmission.

‎The global health organisation noted that Lassa fever is transmitted from the excreta or urine of the multimammate rat, adding that anyone who is suspected of being in contact with a Lassa patient needs to be presented to the health facilities within a period of 21 days.

‎It added, “Lassa fever at early stages presents symptoms similar to febrile illnesses such as malaria. Symptoms of the disease generally include fever, headache, sore throat, general body weakness, cough, nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea, muscle pains, chest pain, and, in severe cases, unexplainable bleeding from ears, eyes, nose, mouth, vagina, anus and other body orifices. It could also present persistent bleeding from sites of intravenous cannulation.”

‎Lassa fever is endemic in West Africa, where the first case was reported in 1969 in Lassa, a town in Nigeria, more than 50 years ago, and it is estimated that nearly 5000 deaths occur in West Africa each year.

DECENCY GLOBAL NEWS reports that Nigeria is one of the endemic hotspots and has experienced numerous recurrent outbreaks of Lassa fever due to the increased multiplication of the host reservoir and rodents.

‎For the Lassa epidemics in 2022 and January 2023 alone, Nigeria accounts for a quarter of the annual deaths from this disease.

‎Every year, especially during the dry season, fresh outbreaks occur and lives are lost.

‎Year after year, the disease follows a predictable seasonal pattern, spiking in the dry season, especially between November and April. Yet, despite this predictability, Nigeria’s response remains reactionary, not proactive.

‎Despite the initial emergency classification, DECENCY GLOBAL NEWS gathered that there are still major gaps in diagnosis, public awareness, and healthcare infrastructure.

‎Experts blamed poor surveillance systems, insufficient research funding, and the government’s lukewarm attitude toward public health crises as key factors responsible for the continuous annual cases of the disease without any effective response to tackle it.

‎More cases, more deaths

‎As of 2025, Lassa fever has not only remained a threat but has also quietly entrenched itself as an annual killer.

‎According to NCDC, between January and June 2025, Nigeria recorded 766 confirmed cases of Lassa fever and 145 deaths across 18 states.

‎This puts the case fatality rate (CFR) at 18.9 per cent, an increase from 17.6 per cent in the same period in 2024.

‎In Q1 2025 alone, the NCDC reported 645 confirmed cases and 118 deaths across 91 local government areas in 33 states. These figures should have triggered national alarm bells. Instead, beyond technical press releases and temporary containment efforts, not much changed on the ground.

‎Despite being a national concern, Lassa fever does not strike Nigeria evenly.

‎Some states bear a disproportionate share of the disease burden year after year, making them what epidemiologists call “endemic zones”.

‎Among states that bear the highest burden are Ondo, Edo, Bauchi, Taraba, and Ebonyi, collectively responsible for over 70 per cent of the confirmed Lassa fever cases in recent years.

‎It was observed that the concentration of cases in these states reflects a deadly combination of ecological vulnerability, poor sanitation, weak health systems, and limited government presence in rural communities.

‎For years, Lassa fever has thrived in these same locations, yet public health efforts continue to focus more on short-term containment than long-term transformation.

‎Experts wade in

‎Experts have expressed diverse views about the factors responsible for why the country has not been able to reduce death cases from Lassa fever.

‎While some argued that there is no end in sight to rising cases of Lassa fever, some expressed concern that the rising CFR indicates not just a worsening epidemic but also a failing healthcare system.

‎According to them, in many affected states, diagnostic delays, poor infrastructure, and under-equipped hospitals continue to fuel high mortality rates.

‎They lamented that the lack of integration between the public health system and community leadership structures further weakens response efforts.

‎A virologist based in Lagos, Dr. Moses Ayorinde said, “The truth is that we don’t learn as a nation. Year after year, the same mistakes are repeated, poor surveillance, late diagnoses, lack of resources, and no structured community engagement. It’s a cycle of failure.

‎“In many of the worst-hit states, particularly Ondo, Edo, and Taraba, health facilities are ill-equipped to handle even moderate surges in infection. Clinics lack isolation wards, diagnostic turnaround times stretch to several days, and medications are in short supply.

‎“In some local government areas, there are no functioning molecular testing labs, forcing health workers to ship samples hundreds of kilometres away, losing critical time that often costs lives.”

‎Also speaking, a renowned virologist, Prof Oyewole Tomori insisted that decentralising the NCDC’s operations will strengthen the country’s fight against Lassa fever.

‎He faulted state governments for not doing enough to protect the health of its citizens.

‎He argued that sub-nationals, where the outbreaks occur yearly, have either been docile or merely reactive.

‎“This is another reminder of the urgent need to invest and strengthen health and response mechanisms to deal with emerging and perennial disease outbreaks

‎“Additionally, public awareness on prevention strategies, rapid diagnostic tools and training of healthcare workers on early detection and case management techniques should remain a priority,” he stated.

‎An infectious disease physician at the College of Medicine, University of Lagos/Lagos University Teaching Hospital, Idi-Araba, Dr Iorhen Akase, said Nigeria would continue to record cases of infectious diseases because the conditions for re-infection abound.

‎Akase told one of our correspondents, “The conditions that make for emerging and re-imaging infections abound locally and globally. When COVID-19 came, we had hoped that it would create an opportunity for us to learn lessons, but the lessons are quickly forgotten; people are more interested in moving on with their lives than learning lessons and how they can apply them to forestall further occurrences, but unfortunately, we’ve not learnt any lesson; our health care system can’t provide basic care for people.

‎“Our approach has not shown that we’ve learnt lessons as a country. Clearly, we have not heard the last of infectious outbreaks. Ideally, we should not be having so many outbreaks, though we may be having sporadic occurrences, but every time we are in a panic mode, it is clear that the plan and preparedness are inadequate.”

‎Also, a public health physician and infectious disease expert, Prof. Bayo Onajole, said it will be difficult to stop infectious disease occurrence because it is in equilibrium.

‎“All these things are natural phenomena that occur. Some of these diseases have always been there but on a small scale. Just like human beings don’t want to die, all these organisms don’t want to die too, so they keep mutating and trying to find better ways to survive.

‎“Lassa fever and others have been there even before the 1960s. We are having an increase just like we are having an increase in population, and when you have many people who are eligible to be exposed, many more people will come down with signs and symptoms of diseases,” he noted.

‎Meanwhile, a nutritionist, Mrs. Odunayo Babatunde, urged Nigerians to prioritise hygiene and food safety as critical preventive measures.

‎Babatunde described the Lassa fever outbreak as “a serious but preventable health crisis”, emphasising the importance of proper hygiene, food storage, and rodent control in reducing the spread of the disease.

‎Speaking with our correspondent, the food expert warned against consuming fruits and vegetables sold in unsanitary environments.

‎She stressed that raw foods sold in dirty conditions could lead to severe health complications, including food poisoning and diarrhoea.

‎“Dirty food, when ingested, can have several health implications. It can lead to illnesses like cholera, diarrhoea, and, in the case of Lassa fever, the contamination of food by infected rodents,” she explained.

‎What we are doing to tackle Lassa fever – NCDC DG

‎The Director‑General of the NCDC, Dr Jide Idris, revealed that the agency is ramping up its response ahead of a potential surge in Lassa fever cases, underscoring the impact of climate change on seasonal disease patterns.

‎Speaking at the NCDC headquarters in Abuja in December 2024, the DG explained that disruptions in rainfall patterns, linked to climate change, are lengthening the dry season.

‎He noted, “Lassa fever is becoming something you see as seasonal because of climate change,” Idris said, noting that this seasonal shift is especially pronounced in agrarian communities.

‎The NCDC boss stated that the peak of Lassa fever season, which traditionally spans October to May and intensifies in May, is now extending further into the dry season due to prolonged dry spells.

‎This extension, he warned, increases the risk of human exposure to infected rodents and could escalate the spread of the disease.

‎Idris added that the NCDC has been intensively monitoring case numbers and environmental trends that drive transmission.

‎According to him, the agency has established an Emergency Operations Centre, empowering a coordinated response across affected states. Surveillance has been intensified in high-risk areas, and critical medical supplies—ranging from infection prevention and control materials to diagnostic tools—have been widely distributed.

‎He added that the NCDC is working closely with other government agencies to develop comprehensive control strategies that include environment‑driven insights on rodent behaviour.

‎Risk assessments conducted by the agency have raised alarm: the upcoming Lassa fever season is deemed “high risk,” particularly in states with historically elevated case burdens. In response, the NCDC is accelerating readiness efforts and collaborating with relevant stakeholders to prevent a potential outbreak.

‎“We will continue to see more cases. There’s no doubt about that,” the DG acknowledged.


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