Agency, Global Fund To Review Impact Of COVID-19 Response Investments In Nigeria

National Agency for the Control of AIDS (NACA), in collaboration with the Global Fund and other implementing partners, is set to convene a national close-out meeting to review the achievements, lessons learned and long-term impact of the COVID-19 Response Mechanism (C19RM) investments in Nigeria.

The meeting, scheduled to be held in Abuja, will bring together representatives of the Federal Ministry of Health, state governments, development partners, civil society organisations, healthcare workers and other stakeholders involved in implementing the C19RM grant between 2021 and 2025.

The Global Fund established the COVID-19 Response Mechanism to help countries respond to the COVID-19 pandemic while protecting gains against HIV, tuberculosis, and malaria and strengthening health systems for future emergencies.

In Nigeria, the intervention supported critical health system improvements, including disease surveillance, laboratory strengthening, infection prevention and control measures, oxygen infrastructure, cold-chain systems, healthcare workforce development and emergency response mechanisms.

Speaking ahead of the event, the Director-General of NACA, Dr Temitope Ilori, in a statement issued by the Nigeria Health Watch on Wednesday, said the investments had become an integral part of Nigeria’s broader health systems planning and emergency preparedness framework.

“We learned through COVID-19 that being prepared for one emergency isn’t just about that emergency; it’s about being prepared for any emergency. C19RM investments in emergency response mechanisms, supply chain resilience and rapid deployment capacity are now embedded in our health systems planning and programming,” Ilori said.

According to NACA, the close-out meeting will provide a platform to showcase key achievements recorded under the grant, assess implementation experiences, highlight innovations and best practices, and discuss strategies for sustaining the gains made through the intervention.

The event will feature presentations from implementing agencies and partners, stakeholder reflections, panel discussions, and the premiere of documentary and storytelling products designed to capture the human impact and legacy of the C19RM investment across the country.

Also speaking ahead of the meeting, Executive Secretary of the Country Coordinating Mechanism (CCM) Nigeria, Tajudeen Ibrahim, described the grant as a demonstration of the value of partnership and country ownership in responding to public health emergencies.

“The C19RM grant demonstrated the power of effective partnership, coordination, engagement, oversight and country ownership in responding to a public health emergency.

“Beyond supporting Nigeria’s COVID-19 response, the investments have strengthened critical health systems and facilitated pandemic preparedness and response capacities that will continue to benefit the country for years to come,” Ibrahim said.

He stressed the need to sustain the gains achieved under the programme and leverage lessons learned to build a more resilient health system capable of responding effectively to future public health threats.