Stakeholders advocate bio-security policies to curb infectious organisms on environment

Stakeholders in the environment sector have been called upon to make biosecurity policies that would serve as a blue print towards containing infectious organisms on the environment.

The Director General, National Management Biosafety Agency, Dr. Rufus Ebegba, who made the call at the second national review of the Draft national Biosecurity policy and action plan meeting in Abuja Nigeria’s capital, explained that the issue of biosecurity has become a global issue and called for more collaboration in tackling the challenge.

“Nigeria as a country must be secured, it is on that note the federal government sees the issue of national Biosecurity policy as a major national biosecurity policy assignment. We all own this country a responsibility that comes out sound that meets international best standard. We will ensure that we do what we need to do, working with our partners so that we have a very best robust national biosecurity policy that will meet our national aspiration and also the world standard.”

He further stated that, “I also call on our partners to stand by us, support the process, Nigeria is a global player in the area of biosecurity, and Nigeria believes that the world must be secured from biological harmful agents. So our partners from Embassies and other development organizations.

“We welcome you and seek your support and partnership in this very important assignment that Nigeria has taken upon its self. If Nigeria is self; other part of the world is safe, if every country is safe it means the whole world is safe.”

The Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Environment, Mr. Abel Enitan, explained that the critical review of the draft Biosecurity policy and action plan is aimed at institutionalizing a coordinated and functional biosecurity system towards minimizing the risk of bio threat to the environment, human health, animal and plants in Nigeria.

“The journey so far is in developing policy to meet international best practices taking into consideration the national priorities worthwhile.

“An achievement credited to our collective consciousness to safe guard our eco system from threat, arising from intentional or unintentional use of valuable biological material,” he added.

The Representative of WHO, Dr Philip Zoto assured that World Health Organization will continue to support Nigeria to ensure the policy document is completed.

“The policy document is one of the global best practices considering the fact that all over the world, we are having a high rate of zoonotic disease affecting human beings .So, all over the world, people are coming together to ensure that human beings are protected from all the bio threats and bio hazards,” he noted.

WHO will continue to support the Federal government of Nigeria to ensure that the policy document is completed before the end of this year, and become a working document.

The draft National Biosecurity Policy and Action Plan aimed at helping the government and stakeholders to prevent and avert Bio-threat early, and also serve as a fundamental approach to minimize the risk of biological threats to human, animal and plants.