The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) has placed several states on high Ebola preparedness alert after a fresh risk assessment classified Nigeria’s chances of importing the deadly disease as high amid regional outbreaks.
Dr Jide Idris, Director-General of the NCDC said this in a Thursday statement, stressing that Nigeria had not yet recorded any confirmed Ebola Virus Disease case linked to the outbreak.
He explained that the World Health Organization’s Public Health Emergency of International Concern declaration and increasing Ebola cases in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda required intensified surveillance and preparedness activities across Nigeria immediately.
Idris stated that the NCDC conducted a dynamic risk assessment to guide anticipatory and response measures, concluding that Nigeria faced a high Ebola importation risk because of international travel and regional population movement.
He added that uncertainty surrounding the outbreak’s magnitude and the possibility of delayed recognition were heightened because Ebola symptoms closely resembled common endemic diseases such as malaria and Lassa fever in Nigeria.
According to him, all states and the Federal Capital Territory must maintain Ebola preparedness, although readiness efforts should reflect varying importation and transmission risks identified through the NCDC’s recently developed preparedness classification system.
The agency categorised Lagos, the FCT, Rivers, Kano, Enugu, Borno, Akwa Ibom, Cross River, Taraba, and Adamawa as high-risk states because of international airports, porous borders, and active trade or travel routes.
Idris also identified Ogun, Nasarawa, Kaduna, Plateau, Kogi, Niger, Jigawa, Katsina, Bauchi, Ebonyi, Abia, and Bayelsa as moderate-risk states requiring sustained preparedness efforts against possible Ebola importation and transmission threats.
He said that the WHO declaration underscored the seriousness of the regional threat and highlighted the urgent need for Nigeria to strengthen preparedness measures before detecting any suspected Ebola case domestically.
The NCDC boss explained that national preparedness efforts aimed to ensure every state and the FCT could quickly detect, contain, and respond to suspected Ebola cases while protecting health workers and sustaining healthcare services.
According to him, state governments and Commissioners for Health must ensure immediate operational readiness across public and private health systems to effectively manage any suspected Ebola case and prevent possible widespread community transmission.
Idris emphasised that preparedness measures should prioritise early detection, immediate isolation, supportive care, infection prevention and control, safe sample handling, contact tracing readiness, referral systems, workforce protection, and adequate medical countermeasures nationwide.
He urged commissioners to provide leadership for coordinated Ebola readiness efforts across their respective states and the Federal Capital Territory, assuring them of continued technical guidance and national coordination support from the NCDC.
The Director-General also requested commissioners to activate state public health coordination structures for Ebola preparedness and conduct rapid risk assessments focusing on population movement, high-density settings, and facilities receiving suspected cases.
He further advised states to engage public and private healthcare providers to ensure early suspicion, safe separation of suspected cases, immediate reporting through approved channels, and identification of functional isolation or holding facilities.
Idris stressed the importance of strengthening facility readiness for screening, infection prevention, ambulance transfers, safe sample movement, decontamination, and waste management while ensuring frontline workers received adequate protection and psychosocial support during operations.
He also urged intensified traveller monitoring and surveillance in states with airports, seaports, transport hubs, land borders, and migrant corridors while encouraging calm public communication to discourage stigma and promote verified information sharing.
The NCDC boss directed states to maintain essential health services without disruption and submit readiness updates within seventy-two hours while immediately reporting suspected cases, high-risk exposures, unusual febrile clusters, or major preparedness gaps. (Text, excluding headline: NAN)
Advertisement