The Federal Government has assured Nigerians that measures are in place to contain the Ebola outbreak, saying health authorities and relevant agencies are working to prevent further spread of the virus.
The assurance was given by the Chairman of the Presidential Task Force on Ebola Preparedness, Virus Disease Preparedness and Emerging Public Health Threats, Femi Gbajabiamila, after an emergency meeting of the task force at the State House on Wednesday.
Gbajabiamila, who is also the Chief of Staff to President Bola Tinubu, said the task force had been working behind the scenes since its inauguration in June to strengthen the country’s preparedness for Ebola and other emerging public health threats.
He attributed the early identification of the index case to surveillance measures and protocols put in place by the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention and other relevant agencies.
According to him, Nigeria has recorded about 44,000 flights into and out of the country since concerns about Ebola emerged in June, making the existing surveillance and screening measures crucial to detecting potential cases.
“All hands have been on deck,” Gbajabiamila said, explaining that the passenger involved did not initially show symptoms of the disease.
He said the symptoms appeared four days after the woman arrived in Abuja, adding that the identification process and established protocols enabled health authorities to detect the infection.
“That also speaks to the country’s capacity and ability to deal with this disease as best as we can,” he said.
The task force chairman assured Nigerians that the government would strengthen existing protocols where necessary and ensure stricter enforcement of public health measures to prevent further transmission.
“The Task Force is on top of it. NCDC is on top of it; everyone is on deck. We must build community trust and avoid panic, but it’s also important to state clearly that this is a collaborative effort between the government and the people,” he said.
He urged Nigerians to cooperate with health authorities and comply with public health directives, stressing that individual responsibility would be critical to containing the outbreak.
Also speaking, the Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Muhammad Ali Pate, said Nigeria had competent health authorities and established surveillance systems capable of responding to the public health threat.
Pate listed private hospital operators, the Nigeria Immigration Service, aviation authorities, the Ministry of Interior and subnational agencies among the stakeholders involved in the response.
He said contact tracing had been intensified, while individuals who had been in contact with the imported index case were being identified and isolated in line with public health protocols.
“We have been conducting contact tracing diligently and isolating those contacts of the index imported case in this country. We will continue to do that,” the minister said.
He added that the Federal Government, working with the World Health Organisation, the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention and the NCDC, had activated the incident management system across the different areas of the response.
According to him, the relevant agencies are working round the clock, while hospital response capabilities have also been activated to support efforts to contain the outbreak.
“Our hospital capabilities are also activated, such that we can aim to contain this case, as has been the case in other countries, but we will not relent. Our population should respect public health directives,” Pate said.
The minister expressed confidence in the country’s preparedness, noting that most states had response plans and that available resources were being mobilised to strengthen their capacity to tackle the outbreak.
“Most of our states have adequate response plans. We have the resources, and we’re mobilising those capabilities. And we’re also confident that if we continue on this path, we should be able to dent this outbreak,” he said.
Pate also cautioned Nigerians against spreading unverified information and rumours that could trigger unnecessary panic.
“The key also for the population is to avoid spreading misinformation or baseless rumours, which can cause unnecessary panic,” he said.
He recalled the experience of Nigerian public health experts in containing Ebola in 2014, expressing confidence that the country could draw on that experience to address the current situation.
“In addition to our exceptional public health physicians who had successfully tamed this virus in 2014, and had contributed to other countries, we are confident that if we continue in this direction, we will emerge out of this crisis in a much stronger place,” the minister added.
Those present at the meeting included the Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Immigration Service, Kemi Nandap; Managing Director of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, Bunmi Kuku; FAAN General Manager, Adamu Adamu; WHO Representative, Pavel Ursu; and the Special Regional Representative to the Director-General of the Africa CDC, Dr Aliko Ahmed.
Other participants were the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Administration and Operations and Secretary of the task force, Oyinade Nathan-Marsh; Public Health Executive, Niniola Williams; Mandate Secretary for Health and Environment in the Federal Capital Territory, Dr Dolapo Fasawe; and Chairman of the Medical Advisory Committee at the State House Medical Centre, Dr Victoria Ogala.
The Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Jumoke Oduwole; Lagos State Commissioner for Health, Prof. Akin Abayomi; and Director of Operations, Licensing and Training Standards at the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority, Capt. Donald Spiff, also participated in the meeting virtually.
