Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) has disclosed that about 68 percent of confirmed diphtheria cases in Nigeria involve people who were not vaccinated against the vaccine-preventable disease.
Gatekeepers News reports that Michael Okali, Principal Health Communication Officer at the NCDC and head of the Risk Communication, Community Engagement and Infodemic Management Pillar of the National Diphtheria Incident Management System, disclosed this in an interview with Channels Television on Saturday.
Okali said another 28 percent of confirmed cases had an unknown vaccination status, adding that most of the deaths recorded from the disease were among unvaccinated people.
He urged parents and caregivers to ensure that eligible children receive their recommended diphtheria vaccines, stressing that vaccination is available free of charge at primary healthcare centres across the country.
According to the NCDC official, everyone is at risk of contracting diphtheria, but people who are unvaccinated or inadequately vaccinated face a greater risk and can also transmit the infection to others.
He explained that children should receive the recommended doses during infancy, while people whose vaccination status is uncertain may require booster vaccines such as Td or Tdap, which protect against diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis.
Okali also revealed that Kano, Kaduna, Katsina, Borno, Bauchi, Plateau, Sokoto and Zamfara account for 98 percent of confirmed diphtheria cases in the country.
Between August 24 and August 30, 2026, Nigeria recorded 69 suspected cases, 48 confirmed cases and four deaths, according to the NCDC.
The agency, working with the National Primary Health Care Development Agency and the Federal Ministry of Health, is supporting affected states through surveillance, contact tracing, case management, laboratory testing and vaccine distribution.
Diphtheria is a bacterial infection that can affect the nose, throat, tonsils and larynx. It spreads mainly through respiratory droplets from infected people and can cause serious complications involving the heart, nerves and kidneys.
The development comes amid a worsening outbreak in some states. In Plateau State, for instance, the government ordered the temporary closure of all public and private primary and secondary schools from September 7 following suspected diphtheria cases and deaths.
