Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) has raised the alarm over shortages of diphtheria antitoxin and poor vaccination coverage in Northern Nigeria, warning that thousands of children remain vulnerable to severe infections and possible deaths.
The organisation said inadequate supplies of the life-saving drug, coupled with gaps in routine immunisation, were contributing to the continued spread of diphtheria and frustrating efforts to contain the outbreak.
MSF, in a statement issued on Friday, called on the Federal Government, state governments, donors and international partners to urgently address the shortage by securing supplies of antitoxin, vaccines and other essential medicines.
It also urged authorities to facilitate the prompt clearance of medical supplies at the nation’s ports and ensure their rapid distribution to affected communities.
The MSF Medical Coordinator in Nigeria, Dr David Kizito, said the dwindling global supply of diphtheria antitoxin was threatening the ability of medical teams to save patients.
“The global shortage of diphtheria antitoxin is becoming a matter of life and death. Our stocks are dangerously low, and we risk being unable to treat children and save lives as the outbreak continues,” Kizito said.
He lamented that children were still developing life-threatening complications from a preventable disease because of incomplete vaccination and delayed access to healthcare.
“Diphtheria is a preventable disease, yet children continue to arrive at health facilities with life-threatening complications because they are not fully vaccinated or cannot access care in time,” he added.
According to MSF, Nigeria has recorded more than 41,000 suspected diphtheria cases, over 24,000 confirmed infections and more than 1,260 deaths since the outbreak started in late 2022.
The organisation said 12,977 suspected cases, 10,476 confirmed infections and 406 deaths were recorded nationwide between January and August 9, 2026.
It identified Bauchi, Borno, Kaduna, Katsina, Kano, Plateau, Sokoto and Zamfara as among the northern states significantly affected by the outbreak.
MSF explained that diphtheria antitoxin was the only specific treatment that neutralised the toxin produced by the disease and was most effective when administered within 48 hours of the onset of symptoms.
However, it said the inconsistent global supply of the drug had left medical teams struggling to meet treatment needs, sometimes forcing them to ration available stocks.
The organisation disclosed that it had treated more than 9,000 diphtheria patients through hospital-based and community interventions since the beginning of its response this year.
In Kano State, MSF supported two rounds of vaccination in April and June, administering more than 835,000 doses to children in collaboration with the state Ministry of Health.
Similarly, its vaccination interventions in Sokoto State between February and April reached 49,018 children below the age of 15.
The organisation expressed particular concern over the situation in Zamfara State, where its supported facilities in Gusau recorded more than 671 admissions within one month from October 6, following the state’s declaration of an outbreak in September.
It said most of the patients were children, with four out of every five admitted not having received diphtheria vaccination.
The shortage of vaccines has also affected efforts to contain the outbreak in Zamfara, where only 25,000 of the 90,000 doses required for a reactive vaccination campaign had been supplied.
MSF warned that the shortfall meant approximately three out of every four children targeted by the campaign remained unreached.
It said it was working with state health authorities to obtain additional doses and support a large-scale vaccination exercise.
In Sokoto State, the organisation is supporting diphtheria treatment at the Infectious Disease Hospital in Amanawa and the Specialist Hospital.
It also reported that its intervention in Bauchi State helped reduce the diphtheria case fatality rate from 8.7 per cent to one per cent after treating at least 1,890 suspected patients between August 2025 and May 2026.
Meanwhile, Shafa’atu, a mother whose three children received treatment at an MSF-supported hospital in Sokoto, described the frightening experience of having her children infected with the disease.
She said the family initially knew little about diphtheria until her first child became ill.
“We were very worried when our first child became sick because we knew very little about diphtheria at the time,” she said.
“My child struggled to eat, and whenever he ate, he vomited. Diphtheria is a dangerous disease.”
MSF stressed that expanding routine immunisation, particularly in rural communities, was essential to building community immunity and preventing future outbreaks.
It further called on pharmaceutical manufacturers and global health partners to increase diphtheria antitoxin production and establish reliable supply systems to address the growing treatment needs in Nigeria and other affected countries.
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