Lassa fever has claimed 118 lives in Nigeria during the first three months of 2025, according to the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC). The agency confirmed 645 cases between January and March, with a fatality rate of 18.3%.

More than 20 health workers were infected across five of the 33 affected states. NCDC Director General Jide Idris warned that treatment centers are facing staffing shortages, and many patients delay care in favor of self-medication.

Nigeria has been averaging about 100 Lassa fever deaths each quarter. The virus, first identified in 1969 in Borno State, remains a major health threat, especially in rural areas with poor sanitation.

Despite prevention campaigns, environmental hygiene in impoverished communities has not improved, making it difficult to keep rodents—the primary carriers—away from homes and food supplies.