NCDC intensifies Ebola preparedness as Nigeria strengthens border surveillance

n n

Dr Jide Idris, Director General, NCDC

n

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) says it has intensified preparedness measures against the Ebola Virus Disease (EVD), though there is no confirmed case in Nigeria.

n

The Director-General of NCDC, Dr Olajide Idris, disclosed this on Friday during the 15th Expanded Ministerial Oversight Committee (MOC) Meeting in Abuja.

n

Idris said the agency had activated surveillance systems, strengthened coordination with relevant agencies and assessed treatment and laboratory infrastructure to enhance national preparedness.

n

He said although the Presidential Ebola Task Force was reconstituted only recently, response activities had commenced before its inaugural meeting.

n

“The task force has only met once, but we did not wait for its reconstitution because we started working immediately after the outbreak was reported,” he said.

n

Idris said NCDC was collaborating with Port Health Services, aviation authorities, the Nigeria Immigration Service and the Nigeria Customs Service to strengthen surveillance at points of entry.

n

According to him, the initial focus is on five states with international airports to improve screening of inbound travellers.

n

He said the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare had issued entry protocols requiring travellers arriving in Nigeria to complete health declaration forms before arrival.

n

The NCDC boss said travellers identified as persons of interest were being documented and monitored, and their destination states notified for appropriate follow-up.

n

He acknowledged implementation challenges but expressed confidence that the system would continue improving.

n

Idris said NCDC had assessed molecular laboratories and isolation centres established during the COVID-19 pandemic to determine their readiness for Ebola response.

n

He said that an express executive approval of N785.3 million has been made for Ebola readiness activities and that the State Ebola Readiness Plan had been finalised with disbursements to states in an advanced stage.

n

He, however, expressed concern over the poor state of several facilities, attributing it to inadequate maintenance after their establishment.

n

“We found that most of the facilities are in a horrible, dilapidated state. Some have been abandoned and require urgent rehabilitation,” he said.

n

Idris said some molecular laboratories had also experienced operational challenges, including unreliable electricity supply, leading to wastage of reagents and consumables.

n

He said rehabilitation of facilities had commenced in some states before funding constraints interrupted the exercise.

n

According to him, NCDC is finalising a national Ebola contingency plan while upgrading selected laboratories to strengthen diagnostic capacity.

n

He added that standard operating procedures had been distributed to states, while personnel were receiving training on Ebola case management.

n

Speaking on cholera, Idris said case fatality rates had declined to below one per cent in most affected states after excluding figures from Borno.

n

He said investigations showed that the higher mortality recorded in Borno was linked to poor water supply, sanitation and open defecation.

n

According to him, response teams also discovered that some patients were initially managed as acute watery diarrhoea instead of cholera, delaying appropriate treatment.

n

He said additional response teams had since been deployed to strengthen case management and outbreak control in the state.

n

For Quarter Three, 2026 plans, he said that the agency would support the procurement of commodities for high-burden states ahead of the quarter’s seasonal risk period and also cascade orientation trainings to remaining geopolitical zones.

n

Idris, however, urged state leadership systems to implement the Special State Outbreak Investigation and Response Funds Approval in line with the provided plans from the NCDC for EVD preparedness.

n

He also urged states to invest in outbreak preparedness and response actions in their annual operational plans and budgets in line with the Nigeria Health Sector Renewal Investment Initiative evidence, planning and research framework. (NAN)

n n