Portal:Nigeria/Selected article/32

The COVID-19 pandemic in Nigeria was a part of the worldwide pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first confirmed case in Nigeria was announced on 27 February 2020, when an Italian national in Lagos tested positive for the virus. On 9 March 2020, a second case of the virus was reported in Ewekoro, Ogun State, a Nigerian citizen who came into contact with the Italian national.

The effect of the virus in Nigeria has become notable worldwide for being extremely understated, as there have been just under 255,000 confirmed cases in a country of 200 million+; however, there has been far less testing for the virus in Nigeria than other countries. Deaths however have been minimal (3,155). This has been credited to a warmer climate, far younger populations (fewer people in care homes), faster government responses, and, crucially, experience in dealing with recent epidemics, such as the Ebola virus, that most Western countries lacked.