The department of health in Nigeria has confirmed the first case of coronavirus (Covid-19), the third country in Africa after Egypt and Algeria to report a case of the disease which was first detected in China last December.

The revelation was made via the State's verified Twitter account on Friday morning.

"The Federal Ministry of Health has confirmed a Coronavirus disease (Covid-19) case in Lagos State, Nigeria," read the tweet.

"The case, which was confirmed on the 27th of February 2020, is the first case to be reported in Nigeria since the beginning of the outbreak in China."

The department has called a media briefing in its headquarters in the capital Abuja.

According to the World Health Organisation, globally, more than 80 000 people in nearly 50 countries have been infected. Nearly 2 800 have died, the majority in China's Hubei province.