The European Union (EU) has allocated €1,000,000 (N847 million) in humanitarian funding to combat the spread of diphtheria and assist the most affected communities in Nigeria.
This additional funding comes in response to the ongoing diphtheria outbreak, making Nigeria currently the world’s second-largest outbreak, with 10,322 confirmed and 16,616 suspected cases since the beginning of the year.
Kano State in the Northwest is identified as the epicenter of the outbreak, reporting 8,447 confirmed cases and 589 deaths.
The most affected states include Kano, Yobe, Katsina, Borno, Bauchi, and Kaduna, collectively accounting for 96 percent of all suspected cases. Despite control efforts since late 2022, the disease has spread to other states in the Northwest and Northeast.
Children aged 1 to 14 years represent 72 percent of all confirmed cases, with over 60 percent of all suspected cases not being vaccinated.
The EU’s new funding will support UNICEF and the medical NGO ALIMA in enhancing surveillance, case detection, treatment, community awareness, and vaccine procurement.
This funding is part of the EU’s Epidemics tool, created to provide rapid funding in case of disease outbreaks. Diphtheria, a highly contagious bacterial infection transmitted between humans, poses a significant risk, particularly to children and those not fully vaccinated against the disease.
The EU’s financial support aims to bolster the response efforts and mitigate the impact of the diphtheria outbreak in Nigeria.