NCDC Reports 41,000 Diphtheria Cases Across Nigeria

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has recorded 41,000 cases of diphtheria, raising public health concerns and prompting urgent response efforts.

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) has reported that the country is still struggling with an outbreak of diphtheria.

The NCDC announced on its official website that 41,336 suspected diphtheria cases have been recorded across all 36 states and the FCT.

Cases were reported from 350 local government areas between Epidemiological Week 19 of 2022 and Epidemiological Week 4 of 2025.

Based on the most recent data from NCDC, 24,846 cases, or 60.1%, were confirmed and 7,769 cases, which account for 18.8%, were discarded.

The classification is pending for 3,546 cases (8.6%), and the status of 5,175 cases (12.5%) remains unknown.

The agency reported that the outbreak is primarily localized in a few states, with Kano at the forefront reporting 23,784 suspected cases. This is followed by Yobe with 5,302 cases; Katsina has 3,708; Bauchi reports 3,066; Borno has recorded 2,902 instances; Kaduna follows with 777 cases and Jigawa concludes this list with an account of approximately 364 occurrences.

Seven states represent 96.5% of all suspected cases.

Among the confirmed cases, most—15,845 (63.9%)—were found in children aged one to 14 years old, emphasizing the severe impact of the disease on younger populations.

The agency stated, “It is alarming that only 4,963 (20%) of the confirmed cases were fully vaccinated with a diphtheria toxoid-containing vaccine, indicating gaps in vaccination coverage.”

The NCDC reported that the outbreak has led to 1,262 deaths, indicating a case fatality rate (CFR) of 5.1 percent among confirmed cases.

Kano reported the highest number of confirmed cases with 17,770, followed by Yobe with 2,380; Bauchi had 2,334; Katsina recorded 1,088; Borno logged 1,036 cases. Meanwhile, Jigawa accounted for 53 cases and Plateau reported a total of 31. Lastly came Kaduna with its tally at just under that figure: forty-four all told!

These states represent 99.4% of all confirmed cases.

The agency additionally revealed that eight suspected cases were recently reported in two states, spanning five local government areas.

Six cases, accounting for 75%, were confirmed to be clinically compatible with diphtheria.

The latest cases resulted in no fatalities, maintaining the case fatality rate at zero percent for this period.

The NCDC emphasized the crucial role of vaccination in fighting the disease.

Since most cases occur in children, it is essential to enhance immunization efforts.

“According to the statement, public health campaigns, enhanced surveillance efforts, and rapid response initiatives are being implemented especially in the states most severely affected.”