President Bola Tinubu has approved the establishment of a Presidential Task Force on Ebola Virus Disease Preparedness and Emerging Public Health Threats and ordered the immediate release of N10 billion to strengthen Nigeria’s emergency health response systems.
The Presidency disclosed this in a statement issued on Monday by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga.
According to the statement, the intervention fund is aimed at enhancing the operational readiness of the National Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) and supporting emergency public health response activities nationwide.
“The fund will strengthen the operational preparedness of the National Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) and support critical national public health emergency response activities,” the statement said.
The Presidential Task Force will be chaired by the Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, and will comprise representatives of relevant ministries, departments and agencies, as well as state governments.
The Presidency said the decision followed growing concerns over the resurgence of Ebola in some African countries.
“Ebola has recently resurfaced in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Uganda, both neighbouring countries,” the statement added.
Tinubu’s approval followed a high-level stakeholders’ meeting chaired by Gbajabiamila to assess Nigeria’s preparedness and develop strategies to prevent the possible importation of the disease into the country.
Representatives of key agencies, including the Ministry of Interior, the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) and the Lagos State Government attended the meeting.
As part of measures to strengthen preparedness, the President directed states with international airports and border corridors to submit detailed intervention plans and funding requirements for coordinated implementation.
The Presidency also announced tighter surveillance at the nation’s entry points, including intensified passenger screening, enhanced temperature checks, crowd-control protocols and increased monitoring of passengers arriving through designated high-risk airline routes.
Airlines listed for enhanced monitoring include Air Uganda, Rwanda Air, Air Tanzania, Air Angola, Kenya Airways and Ethiopian Airlines.
The statement further disclosed that referral and isolation centres at the international airports in Lagos and Abuja would be activated immediately, while similar arrangements would be extended to other airports across the country.
Other approved measures include the mandatory activation of QR code-based pre-arrival health declaration systems for passengers arriving from high-risk countries, as well as the disinfection of airport facilities, cargo areas and baggage halls.
Tinubu also directed the advisory group to engage security, diplomatic and aviation authorities on possible regulations for flights originating from affected countries.
“The Task Force is further directed to designate specific airports or terminals for high-risk flights to enable controlled screening and isolation procedures,” the statement said.
The government added that the task force would also consider adjusting flight schedules to minimise interaction between high-risk passengers and other travellers.
