President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has approved N10 billion in emergency funding and constituted a Presidential Task Force to coordinate response efforts in a decisive move to bolster Nigeria’s preparedness against Ebola and other emerging public health threats.
The fund will strengthen the operational capacity of the National Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) and support critical national public health emergency response activities.
A statement by the Presidential Spokesperson, Mr Bayo Onanuga, on Tuesday disclosed that the Task Force on Ebola will be chaired by the Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, with membership drawn from relevant Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), as well as state representatives.
Mr Onanuga further stated that the President’s approval followed a stakeholder meeting convened under the chairmanship of the Chief of Staff to review Nigeria’s preparedness and develop strategies against the possible importation of Ebola into the country.
President Tinubu also directed all states hosting international airports and international border corridors, as well as relevant MDAs, to submit their plans, funding requirements and intervention needs for consideration and coordinated implementation.
Additional measures to be implemented by the Task Force include the intensification of passenger screening at all international airports, including enhanced temperature checks and crowd-control protocols; enhanced monitoring of passengers arriving through high-risk airline routes, including Air Uganda, RwandAir, Air Tanzania, Air Angola, Kenya Airways and Ethiopian Airlines; and the immediate activation of referral and isolation centres at Lagos and Abuja international airports, with other airports to follow.
Other measures include the mandatory activation of QR code-based pre-arrival health declaration systems for passengers originating from or transiting through designated high-risk countries, as well as the disinfection of departure halls, cargo areas, baggage handling zones and airport facilities as precautionary environmental measures.
The President mandated that the advisory group consult with security, diplomatic and aviation bodies with a view to regulating flights from affected and designated high-risk countries.
The Task Force is also directed to designate specific airports or terminals for high-risk flights to enable controlled screening and isolation procedures and to consider adjusting flight schedules to minimise interaction between high-risk passengers and others.
Ebola has recently resurfaced in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Uganda, both neighbouring countries.
Other critical stakeholders at the meeting included representatives from the Ministry of Interior, the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), the Lagos State Government, among others.
