The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) has reported a total of 1,104 confirmed cases of Lassa fever and 259 deaths in Nigeria across 24 states and 119 Local Government Areas (LGAs) between epidemiological week one and week 37 of 2026. This information was contained in the NCDC Lassa Fever Situation Report for epidemiological week 37, which covered September 7 to 13, 2026.
According to the NCDC report, the case fatality rate (CFR) for Lassa fever in 2026 stands at 23.5 per cent, which is higher than the 18.5 per cent recorded during the same period in 2025. A total of 8,098 suspected cases have been recorded so far in 2026, alongside six probable cases and 259 deaths among confirmed cases.
The report also indicated that 17 new confirmed cases were reported during week 37, up from 12 cases recorded in the preceding epidemiological week. These new cases were reported in Ondo and Taraba states. The NCDC noted that 88 per cent of all confirmed Lassa fever cases in 2026 were reported from five states — Ondo, Bauchi, Taraba, Edo and Benue.
The NCDC report further stated that Ondo accounted for 35 per cent of the confirmed cases, followed by Bauchi with 24 per cent, Taraba 12 per cent, Edo 11 per cent and Benue six per cent. The remaining 12 per cent were reported from 18 other states. The age group most affected by Lassa fever was 21 to 30 years, with confirmed cases ranging from one to 93 years and a median age of 30 years.
The NCDC also reported a male-to-female ratio of 1:0.9 among confirmed cases, while no new healthcare worker infection was recorded during the reporting week. However, 54 healthcare workers had been affected cumulatively in 2026, while 845 cases had been managed at treatment centres.
In terms of contact tracing, the NCDC reported that 2,037 contacts had been listed cumulatively, with 132 still under follow-up and 1,902 having completed follow-up. The agency also noted that 110 contacts had developed symptoms, with 49 testing positive. The NCDC has been actively responding to the outbreak, including strengthening surveillance, case management, infection prevention and control, laboratory diagnosis, risk communication and community engagement across affected states.
The agency has deployed National Rapid Response Teams to seven high-burden states, prepositioned personal protective equipment and supplied infection prevention and control commodities and drugs to treatment facilities. The NCDC also identified major challenges, including late presentation of cases, poor health-seeking behaviour linked to the high cost of treatment and clinical management, poor environmental sanitation, low awareness in high-burden communities and healthcare worker infections.
Key points
- The NCDC reported 1,104 confirmed Lassa fever cases and 259 deaths in Nigeria in 2026.
- The case fatality rate for Lassa fever in 2026 stands at 23.5 per cent.
- The NCDC has deployed teams to high-burden states and supplied equipment to treatment facilities to respond to the outbreak.
