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Nigeria is the most populated country in Africa, with almost one in five of all Africans being Nigerian. The landscape is varied, from savannah grasslands to tropical rainforests of the Cross National Park. Unfortunately much of Nigeria's virgin forests have been replaced by farming, cultivation and urbanisation. Although Abuja is the planned and organised capital, Lagos is the pulsating heartbeat and financial capital of Nigeria. So, the travel vaccinations for Nigeria will vary depending on the type of journey you make. Your basic childhood vaccines should be up to date before you travel. These should include MMR, tetanus, diphtheria and polio. Other jabs for Nigeria include vaccinations for foodborne diseases such as typhoid, hepatitis A and cholera. You’ll also need to consider various specialist vaccinations such as hepatitis B, meningitis ACWY, rabies and TB if you’re deemed at risk) There’s one important immunisation for Nigeria, and that’s the yellow fever vaccination. Please also bear in mind that there’s a high risk of malaria in Nigeria. As a guide, we've created this simple table below that summarises all the jabs for Nigeria you might need.
What travel vaccinations do I need for Nigeria?
Dr Ravi Gowda, Consultant in Infectious Diseases or one of his highly trained clinical colleagues will be looking after your vaccine requirements. Find out more about the Health Klinix team.
Who will be providing your travel injections for Nigeria?
"Please note that there are outbreaks of Lassa fever in Nigeria. You might be exposed to this serious viral infection if you’re in contact with urine or faeces of rats or other humans with the disease. Another disease you should be aware of is vaccine derived polio and therefore you should be immunised for polio before you go. This is usually given as part of your childhood vaccinations."
Dr Gowda's top tip for travel to Nigeria
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Frequently asked questions
This really depends on the travel vaccine itself. Yellow fever vaccine is life-long but you’d need to have the typhoid vaccine every three years.
Please note: you will need to book a travel consultation before we can administer travel vaccinations and this costs £30 (1 person).
We’d advise you to come to see us at least 4 weeks before you travel. This is because some vaccines like rabies are usually scheduled over a month. If you’re in a rush they can be administered much closer together as part of a super-accelerated schedule.
You’ll be glad to know that most travel vaccinations are generally well tolerated with few if any side effects. Some travel vaccines like the yellow fever vaccine can have serious side effects if you have certain health conditions such as a weakened immune system. So it’s really important that we make a very careful risk assessment first.
Live vaccines like the yellow fever vaccine is a recommended travel vaccination for Nigeria but if you’re pregnant then it should not be given unless the benefits outweigh the risks. If you’re pregnant then you should seek specialist travel health advice before you travel from an expert.
Children can have most of the vaccines but often at lower doses. There are, however, age restrictions on some vaccines.
If you have underlying medical health problems then it will be even more important that you’re fully vaccinated, but depending on the underlying condition some vaccines may not be appropriate for you. You’ll need a careful risk assessment first to decide what’s right for your own individual circumstances.
You’re generally at high risk of malaria in Nigeria and we would recommend you take malaria tablets. Although you’ll be taking malaria tablets in Nigeria, it’s important for you to be aware that they’re not 100% effective. You should also make sure you avoid mosquito bites by using insect repellent and sleeping under mosquito nets. We've created a helpful table as a guide for malaria prophylaxis (see below) Which malaria tablets for Nigeria you need will depend upon your individual circumstances and so please ask us for advice.
Recommended malaria tablets for Nigeria
Malaria risk map for Nigeria
Travelhealthpro.co.uk
The question we’re often asked is, "Do I need a yellow fever card for Nigeria?” The simple answer is that you’re at risk of yellow fever in all parts of this country, so we’d recommend having the yellow fever vaccination before you travel. You’ll then receive a yellow fever card as proof that you have been vaccinated against yellow fever.
If you are not sure please ask us for advice, or you can find detailed yellow fever risk for Nigeria here.
Nigeria is Africa’s most populous state with 190 million people. Its largest city Lagos has seen a resurgence of late following the country’s oil boom and bust. It has a thriving art and music scene as well as fast developing tech industries. The people of Nigeria are also culturally very diverse with a significant proportion being Muslim. There are also a number of sacred sites to visit, such as the Osun Sacred Grove and Olumo Rock. Whatever you do, it’s important that you travel safely and we recommend you contact us for advice on vaccines needed for Nigeria.
All about Nigeria
Additional health advice and risks for Nigeria
You may also be at risk of the following diseases:
Under International Health Regulations, you only need a yellow fever vaccine card if you’re arriving from a country with yellow fever risk. However, in reality it’s a bit more complicated than this. This is because we’ve had several reports of our travellers being asked for a yellow fever card at Lagos airport despite arriving from a European country where there’s no yellow fever risk. Some airlines have also asked for the yellow fever certificate for Lagos arrivals in anticipation of this. To make life simple, we recommend that anyone travelling to Nigeria is vaccinated against yellow fever for the following reasons: 1. The disease is transmitted by a mosquito - so difficult to avoid every single bite and it only takes one bite to be infected. 2. Yellow fever is a risk in all parts of Nigeria. 3. The infection is a clear and present danger to you - up to 50% of those not vaccinated can die because it’s serious and there’s no treatment - but there is a very effective vaccine. We would therefore recommend yellow fever vaccination for Nigeria unless you have a contra-indication (a medical reason why you should not receive the vaccine).
Nigeria vaccine certificate requirements
Authors:
Dr Ravi Gowda, Consultant in Infectious Diseases and Travel Medicine
MBBS, MRCP(UK), DTM&H, MRCGP, DCH, DRCOG, DFFP
Caitlin Lancaster, BSc
Resources: