The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) says Nigeria has recorded 469 confirmed cases of Lassa fever and 109 deaths in 2026, with a case fatality rate of 23.2 percent.
Gatekeepers News reports that the figure, according to the agency, is higher than the 18.7 percent recorded during the same period in 2025.
In its Week 9 epidemiological report covering February 23 to March 1, the NCDC said 65 new confirmed cases were reported, representing a decline from the 77 cases recorded in Week 8.
The new infections were identified in Benue, Ondo, Bauchi, Taraba, Edo, Plateau and Nasarawa states.
The agency also disclosed that six healthcare workers were infected during the reporting period, bringing the total number of affected health workers to 37 this year.
Between Week 1 and Week 9 of 2026, Nigeria recorded 2,446 suspected cases of Lassa fever, of which 469 were confirmed and four classified as probable.
The NCDC noted that 86 percent of confirmed cases were concentrated in five states — Bauchi, Ondo, Taraba, Benue and Edo — while the remaining 14 percent were spread across 13 other states.
According to the report, 18 states across 69 local government areas have recorded at least one confirmed case so far this year.
The most affected age group is 21–30 years, with a male-to-female ratio of 1:0.8.
The agency said it has activated the national Lassa fever Incident Management System to coordinate response efforts across multiple sectors.
It added that measures such as intensified case search, contact tracing and deployment of national rapid response teams to seven high-burden states have been implemented.
The NCDC also said personal protective equipment and other response materials have been distributed to treatment centres, while a targeted infection prevention and control strategy has been launched in Benue State with support from the World Health Organization, alongside interventions by Médecins Sans Frontières and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
However, the agency identified several challenges affecting response efforts, including late presentation of cases, poor health-seeking behaviour due to high treatment costs, inadequate environmental sanitation, and rising infections among healthcare workers.
The NCDC urged state governments to intensify year-round community engagement on prevention, while advising healthcare workers to maintain a high index of suspicion, ensure early referrals, and strictly adhere to infection prevention and control measures.
