President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has approved the establishment of a Presidential Task Force on Ebola Virus Disease Preparedness and Emerging Public Health Threats, and authorised the immediate release of N10 billion for emergency intervention.
The announcement was contained in a State House press release signed by Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, on Tuesday.
According to the statement, the fund is aimed at strengthening the operational readiness of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, NCDC, and supporting critical national public health emergency response activities.
The Task Force will be chaired by the Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila. Membership will include representatives of relevant Ministries, Departments and Agencies, MDAs, as well as state governments.
The President’s approval followed a high-level stakeholder meeting convened by the Chief of Staff to review Nigeria’s level of preparedness and develop strategies to prevent the importation of Ebola into the country.
The meeting came amid reports of a resurgence of Ebola Virus Disease in the Democratic Republic of Congo, DRC, and Uganda, both countries that share borders with Nigeria’s wider sub-region.
Stakeholders present at the meeting included representatives of the Ministry of Interior, Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, FAAN, Nigeria Immigration Service, NIS, Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority, NCAA, the Lagos State Government, and other key agencies.
President Tinubu has directed all states hosting international airports and international border corridors, along with relevant MDAs, to submit detailed plans, funding requirements, and intervention needs for coordinated implementation.
The Task Force is mandated to roll out several immediate measures, including intensified passenger screening at all international airports, with enhanced temperature checks and improved crowd-control protocols; enhanced monitoring of passengers arriving on high-risk airline routes, including Uganda Airlines, Rwanda Air, Air Tanzania, TAAG Angola Airlines, Kenya Airways, and Ethiopian Airlines, and immediate activation of referral and isolation centres at Lagos and Abuja international airports while similar facilities will be established at other airports in phases.
Other measures approved by the President include the mandatory activation of QR code-based pre-arrival health declaration systems for passengers originating from, or transiting through, designated high-risk countries. Airport authorities are also to intensify disinfection of departure halls, cargo sections, baggage areas, and other facilities as precautionary environmental measures.
The President further directed the advisory group to consult with security, diplomatic, and aviation bodies to regulate flights from affected and high-risk countries.
To strengthen control, the Task Force is to designate specific airports or terminals for high-risk flights. This, the President said, will enable controlled screening and isolation procedures. The group is also to consider adjusting flight timings to minimise interaction between passengers from high-risk routes and other travelers.
