Nigeria closes schools in northeast state over measles outbreak

LAGOS, Nigeria

Nigeria on Monday closed all public and private schools in the country's northeast Adamawa State for a week due to a measles outbreak.

Aisha Umar, a permanent secretary in Adamawa State's Ministry of Education and Capital Development, said the closure was necessary to prevent the spread of the infectious disease that killed 42 people in the region last week.

"This is to mitigate the spread of the disease, and to enable the Primary Health Care Agency to vaccinate the age group of children that are vulnerable to the disease," she said in a statement.

Students will now return to schools on May 13 for the third stage of the 2024 academic session, according to the official.

She said the government has directed all public and private schools to "close down schools accordingly."

Last week, at least 42 people, mostly children, died as a result of the viral disease outbreak in the state’s two local governments.

On May 4, the government warned that the airborne disease could spread throughout the state.

Nigeria's northeast region has been facing terrorist attacks for more than a decade, and the current heat wave is spreading measles.