Nigeria, Jan. 29 -- Nigeria has recorded 21 new confirmed cases of Lassa fever and nine deaths in the first epidemiological week of 2026, pushing the country's case fatality rate (CFR) to 42.9 per cent.

This is according to the latest situation report by the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) .

The report, covering 29 December 2025 to 4 January 2026, shows that while the number of confirmed infections declined compared with the final week of 2025, fatalities rose sharply compared with the same period last year.

Data from the report indicate that 104 suspected cases were recorded in the reporting week, of which 21 were laboratory-confirmed, with no probable cases reported.

All confirmed cases in the reporting peri...