Niger Confirms Receipt Of N21.6m For Ebola Preparedness, Constitutes Emergency Committee

Niger State government has confirmed receipt of N21.6 million from the federal government to intensify preparedness following the discovery of an Ebola case in Abuja.

The commissioner for Health, Dr Murtala Muhammad Bagana, disclosed that as part of the efforts to intensify the preparedness against Ebola Virus Disease (EVD), Niger would inaugurate a Multisectoral Emergency Response Committee.

He said it was to strengthen surveillance, isolation, infection prevention and cross-border monitoring following confirmation of imported case into the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja that the state shares boundaries with.

According to him, the heightened alert was precautionary and that no confirmed Ebola case had been reported in the state but noted that Governor Mohammed Umaru Bago had directed the release of funds for the preparation of a modern isolation centre.

The commissioner disclosed that the federal government had provided N21.6 million to each state, including Niger, to support Ebola preparedness.

The commissioner said the state was strengthening disease surveillance through local government health teams, alerting public and private health facilities, reviewing referral arrangements and reinforcing infection prevention and control measures to protect health workers and patients.

He said collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Health would strengthen surveillance at Minna airport and the international border at Babana in Borgu local government area.

The commissioner cited the international outbreak situation as a reason for vigilance, noting that the World Health Organisation’s October 23 update reported 9,704 confirmed cases and 4,687 deaths in the DRC as of October 20, across 66 health zones in eight provinces.