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The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention has said eight states account for 98 per cent of confirmed diphtheria cases recorded across the country.
The Principal Health Communication Officer in the Department of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion at the NCDC, Michael Okali, disclosed this during an interview on Saturday.
He identified the affected states as Kano, Kaduna, Katsina, Borno, Bauchi, Plateau, Sokoto and Zamfara.
According to Okali, available data showed that about 68 per cent of the confirmed cases were among people who had not been vaccinated against the vaccine-preventable disease.
He said Nigeria recorded 69 suspected cases, 48 confirmed cases and four deaths between August 24 and August 30, 2026.
He added that the NCDC, in collaboration with the National Primary Health Care Development Agency and the Federal Ministry of Health, was providing support to the affected states to contain the outbreak.
“So these are the states that are actually contributing 98 per cent of these cases. And right now, NCDC, in collaboration with NPHCDA and FMOH, are actually sending in support, both on the ground, on-site, and off-site to make sure we help them contain the outbreak,” Okali said.
He said the agency had deployed personnel to Katsina, while 500 vaccines had been sent to Kano and Katsina as part of efforts to strengthen the states’ response.
Okali added that the NCDC was also building its vaccine stockpile to ensure primary healthcare centres had adequate supplies for immunisation.
He, however, said the response to the outbreak was showing encouraging progress.
NCDC activates response task force
Okali, who also heads the Risk Communication, Community Engagement and Infodemic Management Pillar of the National Diphtheria Incident Management System, said the response includes a task force co-chaired by the NCDC Director-General, Dr Jide Idris, alongside the NPHCDA and Federal Ministry of Health.
He said the task force was working with the Emergency Operation Centre for Diphtheria, which has been active since 2022.
According to him, the response covers disease surveillance, contact tracing, case management and strengthening laboratory capacity for testing.
Plateau shuts schools
Concerns over the outbreak have heightened following reports of infections and deaths in several states.
In Plateau State, 23 people have reportedly died from suspected diphtheria cases in the last two weeks, while 143 suspected cases have been recorded.
The state government subsequently ordered the temporary closure of all public and private primary and secondary schools as part of measures to contain the spread of the disease.
Governor Caleb Mutfwang said suspected cases had been identified particularly in Jos North, Wase, Jos South and Bassa Local Government Areas.
The school closure is scheduled to take effect from Monday, September 7, 2026, and covers schools that had already resumed academic activities.
Katsina case fatality rate rises
In Katsina State, health authorities recently raised concerns over the worsening outbreak, saying the case fatality rate had increased to about 5.6 per cent.
The Acting Executive Secretary of the Katsina State Primary Health Care Agency, Dr Shaima’u Abba, attributed the increase largely to patients presenting late at treatment centres after developing severe complications.
She said 32 patients were receiving treatment across four isolation centres in the state, while the disease had spread to 30 of the state’s 34 local government areas.
Abba stressed that vaccination remained the safest, most effective and cost-efficient protection against diphtheria and other vaccine-preventable diseases.
Kano reports thousands of cases
Meanwhile, the Kano State Centre for Disease Control has reported more than 30,000 diphtheria cases across several local government areas.
The Director-General of the agency, Muhammad Abbas, said that all 44 local government areas in the state had been affected.
He also reported 1,744 fatalities and said 14.5 per cent of confirmed cases had been hospitalised.
What is diphtheria?
Diphtheria is a bacterial infection caused by Corynebacterium, which produces a toxin that can affect the nose, throat, tonsils and larynx, as well as other parts of the body.
The infection can cause a greyish-white membrane to form at the back of the throat or nose and may damage the heart, nerves and kidneys.
The bacteria are mainly transmitted through respiratory droplets released when an infected person coughs or sneezes.
People can also contract the infection through contact with infected wounds or ulcers and contaminated clothing or other objects.
Vaccination remains a key measure for preventing diphtheria and reducing the risk of severe illness and death.
