Yellow Fever in West and Central Africa.

A total of sixty seven cases of Yellow Fever in Humans have been reported from West and Central Africa this year, according to a press release issued by the World Health Organization on 6 November 2026. Of these cases, eighteen were fatal. Since the disease is strongly associated with the rainy season in West Africa, it is unlikely that further cases will be reported this year, although it is probable that many other cases have gone unreported. 

In Côte d’Ivoire there have been 30 reported cases, with ten fatalities. Fifteen of the reported cases were from Burkina Faso, where three people died, giving a case fatality ratio of 20%. Four cases were reported in Ghana, three of which were fatal. Nine cases, including a single fatality, were reported in Cameroon. Four cases were reported from Nigeria, again including a single death. Two non fatal cases were reported from the Central African Republic.  Liberia, Guinea, and Togo each reported single, non-fatal case. 

Confirmed yellow fever cases and recently affected areas in the WHO African Region, 2026. Data as of 12 October 2026. World Health Organization.

Yellow Fever is a Flavivirus (the group of RNA Viruses that also includes the West Nile, Zika and Hepatitis C Viruses) transmitted to humans by the bites of infected Aedes and Haemagogus Mosquitoes. The Virus causes a mild fever, accompanied loss of apatite, nausea and muscle pains, which passes within about 15 days. However, in about 15 % of cases a more severe infection attacks the liver and kidneys, which can lead to their failure, and therefore the death of the patient.  It originated in tropical Africa and but was carried to South America and the Caribbean during the trans-Atlantic slave trade. Outbreaks of the disease have also been recorded in parts of tropical Asia and the Pacific in recent years, and many countries in tropical regions require visitors to carry a certificate proving they have been vaccinated against the Virus.

The Yellow Fever Virus. Erskine Palmer/Centers for Disease Control and Prevention/Wikipedia.

Because Yellow Fever infects a wide range of non-Human Mammals, the World Health Organization recomends that vaccination is the most effective means of combating the disease, combined with monitoring the population of Aedes and Haemagogus Mosquitoes and taking steps to prevent large populations of these Insects building up in populated areas. Yellow fever can also be a significant hazard to Cattle, with vaccines available for livestock in some areas, and treatment of live Animals with insecticides also used as a way of reducing infections.

See also...