The World Health Organisation has confirmed it has declared Nigeria free of Ebola transmission.

There have been no new cases there for 42 days.

It comes after Senegal was also taken off the list three days ago.

There were fears that Nigeria, which has Africa's largest population, would have an 'explosive' Ebola outbreak, but this never materialised.

The number of people living in Lagos - around 21 million - is almost as large as the populations of Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone combined.

The WHO says "this is a spectacular success story that shows that Ebola can be contained... Nigeria ended what many believed to be potentially the most explosive Ebola outbreak imaginable."

The organisation praises the response of Nigerian authorities to the outbreak, and says the government and health officials have continued revising their national response plan to prepare for any potential further case of the virus.  

WHO points out, "Nigeria confirmed a total of 19 cases, of whom 7 died and 12 survived, giving the country an enviable case fatality rate of 40% – much lower than the 70% and higher seen elsewhere."

You can read a detailed breakdown of Nigeria's successful efforts to combat Ebola on WHO's website.

More than 4,000 people have died so far in the latest outbreak. Europe's Foreign Ministers are meeting today to discuss their response.