Plateau State Government has intensified its response to a diphtheria outbreak that has left 31 people dead and recorded 469 suspected cases across 10 local government areas.
The state Commissioner for Health, Dr Nicholas Ba’amlong, disclosed this on Thursday, September 24, 2026, during a briefing on the government’s response to the outbreak.
According to the commissioner, three of the 469 suspected cases have been laboratory-confirmed, while the outbreak became a major public health concern in August after sporadic cases had been recorded earlier in the year.
Jos North has the highest number of suspected cases with 370, followed by Wase with 29 and Jos South with 22. Barkin Ladi and Mangu have each recorded 16 cases, while Pankshin has five.
Kanam and Mikang have recorded four cases each, Shendam has two, while Bassa has one.
Ba’amlong said the government had adopted a multi-pronged response, including active case searches, contact tracing and engagement with community leaders.
Mild cases are being diagnosed and treated within communities, while treatment commodities have been supplied to Plateau State Specialist Hospital and Jos University Teaching Hospital for the isolation and treatment of severe cases.
The commissioner also said teachers from public and private schools in Jos North had been trained to identify early signs of diphtheria and take appropriate action.
On vaccination, Ba’amlong said more than 160,000 children had been reached with diphtheria and tetanus vaccines, while more than 30,000 children had received Pentavalent vaccines.
The state is also using media campaigns, jingles and information materials to raise awareness about the outbreak.
To strengthen coordination, the government has activated an Incident Management System, with an Incident Manager tasked with coordinating response activities, working with government agencies and partners, monitoring response measures and facilitating resource mobilisation.
Ba’amlong urged residents and community leaders to cooperate with health officials on case detection, contact tracing, vaccination and other measures aimed at containing the outbreak.
He also acknowledged the support of agencies and development partners including the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control, National Primary Health Care Development Agency, WHO, UNICEF, Red Cross, FHI360 and Save the Children.
