Kenya has confirmed its first case of Ebola, a Kenyan citizen who has been living in the Democratic Republic of Congo for the past seven years.

Health Minister Aden Duale said the patient, who fell ill a month ago, and was treated in several hospitals in DR Congo, died days after arriving in Nairobi.

Duale said the patient boarded a flight on Saturday and underwent normal public screening at the main airport in Nairobi before he was transferred by a relative to a hospital in the city.

More than 4,000 people have died from Ebola in DR Congo this year, in what is the second most deadly known outbreak of the disease.

Shortly after DR Congo declared an outbreak of Ebola in May, it was also reported in Uganda, where two people have died. However, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the county free of the disease in August.

Since then, all cases of the disease have been declared in DR Congo.

The current outbreak has been caused by the Bundibugyo species of Ebola, which is relatively rare, with no known vaccine.

Duale confirmed that the Kenyan national had tested positive for the Bundibugyo species.

According to the minister, the patient first travelled by road from DR Congo to the Ugandan capital Kampala, where he boarded a flight to Nairobi

Duale said that after being taken to the Nairobi Hospital, the patient was transferred to an isolation facility which was built during the Covid-19.

It was there that the patient “developed fever, chills, intense fatigue and weakness, painful swallowing, muscle pain and bleeding under the skin”.

The patient died at 23:30 (20:30 GMT) on Monday and his burial is planned for later on Tuesday in line with public health safety protocols.

At least 28 contacts, including family members and healthcare workers, have been identified, while health authorities are tracing a further 23 passengers and four crew members who travelled on the same flight.

So far, WHO has recorded 4,082 deaths out of 8,463 cases since the emergence of the Bundibugyo species of the virus.

There are currently no approved vaccines or treatments for the species, which is highly infectious.

The Zamfara State Universal Basic Education Board (ZSUBEB) has flagged off the training of 75 State and Local Government Education Authority Social Mobilisation Officers (SMOs) on the utilisation of School-Based Management Committee (SBMC) operational documents.

The training, held at the ZSUBEB Headquarters, Gusau, on Monday, was aimed at strengthening the capacity of the officers to engage communities and stakeholders on improving retention and the quality of basic education in the state.

At the formal flag-off, the Executive Chairman, ZSUBEB, Prof. Nasir Garba Anka, represented by the Permanent Member I, Madawaki Alhaji Dahiru Shehu, said social mobilisation remains critical to the success of government interventions in the education sector.

“Social Mobilisation Officers are an important link between government, schools, parents, communities, traditional and religious institutions, as well as civil society organisations and other stakeholders.”

Madawaki explained that the responsibilities of Social Mobilisation Officers go beyond information dissemination.

“They are expected to build trust, create awareness, encourage community participation, identify barriers to education and promote ownership of educational programmes.”

He emphasised that sustainable progress in basic education cannot be achieved by government alone, but requires the active participation of parents, communities, traditional and religious leaders, teachers, SBMCs and development partners.

In a goodwill message, the State Coordinator of UBEC, Zamfara State Office, Malam Tanimu Abdulkadir, who spoke on behalf of the Executive Secretary of UBEC, Dr. Aisha Garba, and the management of the Commission, commended ZSUBEB for organising the training.

Malam Abdulkadir cited the recent Enrolment Drive Campaign at JNI Primary School, Gusau, where 87 out-of-school children were enrolled, as an example of what effective community mobilisation can achieve.

He further disclosed that UBEC has made SBMC functionality an important indicator in its school monitoring exercise.

Representatives of the Teachers Service Board, Senior Secondary Education Board and Ministry of Education, Science and Technology also pledged their continued support and collaboration.

In his remarks, the Director of Social Mobilisation, ZSUBEB, Alhaji Sani Usman Gummi, thanked the participating institutions, development partners, facilitators, organisers and other stakeholders for their contributions.

Kano State Governor, Abba Kabir Yusuf, has approved the implementation of the January and July 2026 promotions of 18,984 teaching and non-teaching staff of the State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB).

The approval also provides for the release of N235, 116,339.

The decision followed a request by the Executive Chairman of SUBEB, Yusuf Kabir, for funds to implement the promotions for eligible staff whose promotions for the two 2026 cycles had been processed.

In a letter dated September 2, 2026, the Board said it had completed the necessary processes, including verification of staff eligibility and computation of the corresponding salary adjustments.

According to SUBEB, the timely implementation of promotions is essential to staff motivation, career development, capacity strengthening and improved service delivery in the basic education sector.

The Board noted that SUBEB, one of the largest public institutions in Kano State, has approximately 60,000 teaching and non-teaching personnel serving across the 44 LGEAs.

It further disclosed that the present administration inherited outstanding promotion backlogs, involving arrears spanning seven years, as well as another backlog of about one-and-a-half years.

SUBEB said Governor Yusuf had previously approved and facilitated the implementation of the outstanding promotions, describing the intervention as having improved staff morale and restored confidence among personnel.

The Board said the latest approval further demonstrates the administration’s attention to the welfare and career progression of public servants in the state.

The request was subsequently ratified at a recent meeting of the Kano State Executive Council, paving the way for the release of the approved funds and the implementation of the January and July 2026 promotions.