Health
109 children die as measles spreads to 14 states
No fewer than 109 people have died from measles in Nigeria as outbreaks of the vaccine-preventable disease have been recorded in 71 local government areas across the country, according to data obtained from the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention.
The figures were contained in the Measles Situation Report obtained from the NCDC, which showed that 9,308 suspected measles cases were reported across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory during the first seven months of the year.
The agency stated that “7,713 of the suspected cases, representing 82.86 per cent, were confirmed, while 522 cases, representing 5.60 per cent, were discarded and 1,073 cases, or 11.52 per cent, were pending.”
The report put the case fatality ratio at 1.41 per cent, with 109 deaths recorded during the period.
According to the NCDC, “a total of 611 LGAs across 36 states and FCT reported at least one suspected case.”
The agency further stated that “the age group 9 – 59 months accounted for over 58.67% of the confirmed cases in 2026,” highlighting the heavy burden among children below five years of age.
The development comes amid continued efforts by the Federal Government and development partners to strengthen routine immunisation and prevent outbreaks of vaccine-preventable diseases across the country.
Measles is one of the most contagious infectious diseases and spreads rapidly among people who are not immune. Children who are unvaccinated or incompletely vaccinated are particularly vulnerable to severe disease and complications.
The NCDC data showed that the northern part of the country carried the larger share of the burden, recording 7,268 suspected cases and 6,601 confirmed cases during the period.
The southern states, meanwhile, recorded 2,040 suspected cases and 1,112 confirmed cases.
“Six northern states — Borno, Zamfara, Yobe, Bauchi, Katsina and Kebbi — accounted for 62.82 per cent of the 9,308 suspected cases reported nationwide,” the report stated.
Borno recorded the highest number of suspected cases, with 2,673, of which 2,660 were confirmed.
Zamfara followed with 1,157 suspected cases and 1,142 confirmed cases, while Yobe recorded 792 suspected and 766 confirmed cases.
Bauchi had 471 suspected cases and 456 confirmed cases, Katsina recorded 414 suspected and 211 confirmed cases, while Kebbi had 341 suspected and 293 confirmed cases.
The concentration of cases in these states means that the six states alone accounted for more than three-fifths of all suspected measles infections recorded nationally during the period.
The report further showed that “282 of the 7,713 confirmed cases were laboratory-confirmed, while 1,802 were epidemiologically linked and 5,629 were clinically compatible.”
The classification indicates that the overwhelming majority of confirmed cases were clinically compatible rather than confirmed through laboratory testing.
The NCDC also reported that 522 suspected cases were discarded, while more than 1,000 remained pending at the time of the report.
The situation became particularly visible in July, when the country recorded 328 suspected measles cases across 27 states.
Of these, 223 cases, representing 67.98 per cent, were confirmed, while 105 cases, or 32.01 per cent, remained pending.
The agency said “a total of 123 LGAs across 27 states reported at least one suspected case” in July.
No death was recorded in the month, while the four laboratory-confirmed cases and 219 clinically compatible cases made up the 223 confirmed infections.
The July cases were heavily concentrated in seven states.
The NCDC reported that Kebbi, Kano, Ekiti, Ondo, Akwa Ibom, Osun and Lagos accounted for 64.94 per cent of the 328 suspected cases recorded during the month.
Kebbi had the highest monthly burden with 54 suspected cases, followed by Kano with 40, Ekiti with 38, Ondo with 24, Akwa Ibom with 23, while Osun and Lagos each recorded 17 suspected cases.
The spread across both northern and southern states demonstrates that measles transmission was not confined to one geographical zone during the reporting period.
The NCDC’s outbreak surveillance also showed that the situation remained fluid, with fresh outbreaks emerging even as others were being brought under control.
The agency reported that three LGAs recorded new measles outbreaks in July.
They were Ijero in Ekiti State, Gabasawa in Kano State and Wase in Plateau State.
Three other LGAs — Kirfi in Bauchi State, Gwoza in Borno State and Langtang South in Plateau State — had ongoing outbreaks as of July 31.
However, the NCDC said 65 LGAs had ended their measles outbreaks by the end of the month.
Overall, 71 LGAs had recorded an outbreak as of July 31, 2026, according to the situation report.
The state-level figures revealed substantial differences in the geographical distribution of suspected and confirmed cases.
In Borno, 24 LGAs reported suspected cases, and all 24 also recorded confirmed cases.
In Zamfara, 15 LGAs reported suspected cases and all 15 recorded confirmed cases, while Yobe had 16 LGAs with suspected cases and all 16 recorded confirmed cases.
Bauchi had 17 LGAs with suspected cases, all of which also recorded confirmed cases.
Katsina recorded suspected cases in 33 LGAs, with 31 reporting confirmed cases.
Kano had 22 LGAs reporting suspected cases, while 19 recorded confirmed cases.
Kebbi recorded suspected cases in 18 LGAs, with confirmed cases reported in 15.
The data from some southern states also showed widespread geographical transmission.
Akwa Ibom had suspected cases in 32 LGAs, with 25 recording confirmed cases.
Oyo recorded suspected cases in 32 LGAs, although only eight recorded confirmed cases.
Osun had 30 LGAs with suspected cases and 18 with confirmed cases, while Imo recorded suspected cases in 27 LGAs and confirmed cases in 23.
Delta recorded suspected cases in 25 LGAs, with 24 having confirmed cases.
Lagos recorded suspected cases in 17 LGAs, with 14 reporting confirmed cases.
The NCDC figures also showed wide variations in the proportion of suspected cases that were subsequently classified as confirmed.
Borno recorded a 99.5 per cent confirmation rate, with 2,660 confirmed cases out of 2,673 suspected cases.
Zamfara recorded 98.7 per cent, while Bauchi had 96.8 per cent and Yobe 96.7 per cent.
At the other end of the scale, Oyo recorded a confirmation rate of 15.8 per cent, Ogun 22.2 per cent, Lagos 29.4 per cent, Osun 31.3 per cent, Plateau 35.6 per cent and Kogi 33.7 per cent.
The report also recorded high confirmation rates in several other states. Abia recorded 94.5 per cent, Delta 91.2 per cent, Rivers 92 per cent, Sokoto 88.3 per cent, and Niger 87.5 per cent.
The NCDC’s findings are particularly important because of the vulnerability of young children to measles complications.
The agency noted that children aged nine to 59 months accounted for 58.67 per cent of confirmed cases in 2026, compared with 47.54 per cent in 2025.
The concentration of confirmed infections within this age group reinforces the importance of ensuring that children receive measles-containing vaccines at the appropriate ages and that missed children are identified and reached through routine and supplementary immunisation activities.
According to the World Health Organisation, measles can cause serious complications including pneumonia, diarrhoea, dehydration, blindness and encephalitis, and vaccination remains the most effective means of prevention.
Nigeria has continued to implement immunisation campaigns aimed at closing immunity gaps and reaching children who may have been missed by routine services.
However, public health experts have continued to identify insecurity, displacement, hard-to-reach communities, weak access to healthcare services, misinformation and other barriers as challenges to achieving consistently high vaccination coverage.
The NCDC’s surveillance figures also highlight the importance of early detection and response at the LGA level.
With 611 LGAs reporting at least one suspected case between January and July, the burden extends far beyond the 71 LGAs that met the criteria for an outbreak.
This means that while outbreak response remains critical, maintaining routine surveillance across communities is equally important to ensure that new clusters are detected before they expand.
The distinction between suspected cases, confirmed cases and outbreak LGAs is also significant. A suspected case does not automatically constitute a confirmed infection, while an outbreak reflects sustained transmission or a cluster meeting the relevant surveillance criteria.
The NCDC’s July report showed that 105 suspected cases remained pending, indicating that surveillance and case classification were still ongoing at the end of the reporting period.
The agency’s public health laboratory services are responsible for diagnostic services for measles and other diseases of public health importance, while laboratory capacity supports confirmation and outbreak response.
The situation report therefore presents a mixed picture: outbreaks have been successfully ended in dozens of LGAs, but new outbreaks continue to emerge, while thousands of confirmed infections and more than 100 deaths have been recorded.
For children aged nine months to five years, who account for the largest proportion of confirmed infections, maintaining high vaccination coverage is particularly critical.
The NCDC figures put the scale of the challenge into sharp perspective: 9,308 suspected cases, 7,713 confirmed cases, 109 deaths, 611 affected LGAs and 71 LGAs with recorded outbreaks between January and July 2026.
With new outbreaks recorded in Ekiti, Kano and Plateau in July, health authorities will need to sustain surveillance, vaccination and rapid response measures to prevent further spread, particularly among children most vulnerable to severe measles disease.
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