Nigeria confirms Ebola case in patient who arrived from Uganda

Nigeria's government said on Tuesday there was a case of Ebola in ​the capital, Abuja, after laboratory tests confirmed the viral infection, Reuters reported.

Health Minister ‌Muhammad Ali Pate told the public broadcaster that the female patient had travelled from Uganda in East Africa.

"She is in isolation, and she is receiving quality medical care. Contact tracing has been conducted, and it's ​under way as we speak, with 44 contacts already identified," Pate told public ​broadcaster NTA.

Uganda's Health Ministry said in a public statement late on Tuesday ⁠that the patient had travelled to eastern Democratic Republic of Congo for business and ​transited Uganda in early October without symptoms before developing symptoms after arriving in Nigeria.

"Travel through ​Uganda does not establish that infection occurred here. The location of exposure remains under investigation," the ministry said, adding that Uganda had "no confirmed active Ebola cases" at the time of the statement.

"Nigeria successfully contained ‌Ebola ⁠in 2014, and we have the experience and public health systems to respond to this case," the minister said in the statement.

An Ebola outbreak was declared in Democratic Republic of Congo in mid-May and has since grown into the world's second-largest outbreak ever, caused by the ​rare Bundibugyo strain.

Uganda ​reported 20 cases ⁠in May and June, mostly imported from Congo, but was declared free of the virus by the World Health Organization in August.

Kenya ​has reported nine Ebola cases this month, all linked to a person ​who had ⁠travelled from Congo.

The October 19 report from Congo put the number of cases at ​9,552 and deaths at 4,602.