Leadership
By Abiodun Oluwarotimi, Winifred Ogbebo and Victor Okeke
The Nigerian Army has revealed that about 1332 of its peace keeping troops in Liberia have been placed under surveillance following their contact with a Sudanese who later died of the Ebola Virus Disease (EVD).
The director of the Nigerian Army Medical Corps, Major-General Obashina Ogunbiyi stated this in Abuja yesterday.
According to the Army medical officer, the incident followed the death of a Sudanese Muslim man who had come to the camp of the soldiers to lead them in prayer during the Eid-el Fitri celebration, but developed Ebola symptoms the following day and later died. Ogunbuyi noted that the country remained at risk as any of the soldiers could choose to travel home anytime, saying "that is why the military had to be totally involved in the fight against the Ebola virus."
Nigeria To Produce Vaccines Within 1 Year
... Experts Brainstorm On Treatment, Receive 32 Treatment Claims
Health minister Prof Onyebuchi Chukwu has given the assurance that the country will start producing vaccines for Ebola within the next one year, adding that any disease that has a vaccine is as good as eradicated.
"Vaccine is very important, it is better than any drug but it takes time in terms of research to produce. Right now, we have a number of candidate vaccines and we are also going to be part of the clinical testing of Ebola vaccines," he said.
The minister made these revelations yesterday at the opening of a high level expert meeting on treatment and research for Ebola and other emerging infections in Abuja.
Chukwu added that there is a current need to also focus on diagnosis and the development of affordable and reliable rapid diagnostic test kits to facilitate early diagnosis of EVD and other infectious diseases
Meanwhile, the Ebola Treatment and Research Group (TRG) set up by the federal government said it had received 32 treatment claims for Ebola. The group stated that all of them are being evaluated as the country remains determined to find a possible drug or vaccine for the virus. The TRG, which was inaugurated on August 4, has the mandate to collate and analyse related research findings on Ebola, verify claims relating to the treatment of the virus and carry out research into its treatment.
The minister charged the research group to fashion out ways of protecting health workers beyond the current state of the art in cases of outbreaks like Ebola as they are the most vulnerable. Chukwu said the stakeholders' meeting was one in a series of efforts to ensure that suitable medicines for the treatment of EVD are evaluated and roadmap for achieving success adopted.
Earlier, the chairman, Senate Committee on Health, Senator Ifeanyi Okowa, had said that the Senate had instituted a public health legislation which had taken control of borders in the country, even as the international health regulations have been incorporated into the Public Health Act.
According to him, "This motion has passed through the first and second readings in the Senate and is currently at the House of Representatives, after which it will become law and repel the Quarantine Act of 1926 which is already obsolete."
In his contribution, one of the resource persons and associate professor at Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, Georgia, USA, where the US Ebola patients were treated, Dr Igho Ofotokun, asserted that there are no proven therapeutics for the virus in humans as only fluids, electrolytes and the experimental drugs were what the hospitals used in treating patients.
He said only approved personnel were allowed in the isolation wards. Narrating how the hospital was able to manage the patients, he encouraged all hospitals in the country to create and maintain a special isolation unit and to invest heavily in infectious diseases training. "We had problem with waste management, too. The central waste management authority did not allow us to dispose waste at the central area, so we had to decontaminate our own waste," he explained.
Ebola: FAO Launches Initiative To Fight Food Insecurity In West Africa
The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation yesterday launched a programme that will assist 90,000 Ebola-vulnerable households in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone.
The UN secretary-general, Mr. Ban Ki-moon, also announced the appointment of the respective UN crisis managers in the three countries hardest hit by the Ebola outbreak in West Africa, as part of the UN Mission for Ebola Emergency Response.
In their respective roles, the crisis managers will work with their host governments along with other partners to ensure a rapid international response to the Ebola crisis.
Speaking during the launch, head of FAO's Dakar-based Subregional Resilience Hub, the office coordinating the response for the countries whose food supply and livelihoods are threatened by the disruptive effect of the Ebola epidemic on rural economies, agricultural activities and markets, Mr Vincent Martin, said that the comprehensive response of the agency was part of overall United Nations' efforts to save lives and protect livelihoods.
On his part, Bukar Tijani, assistant director-general at the Regional Office for Africa, noted that these actions could not wait, as the outbreak was already reducing purchasing power of vulnerable households, which means less food on their plates and increased nutritional risks for families already on subsistence diets.
He added that fear and stigmatisation also threatened to reduce agricultural activities, thereby placing food security at risk.
The FAO, in a statement after the launching, said: "Early results from rapid assessments point to a worrisome situation. In Sierra Leone, for example, 47 per cent of the respondents said Ebola was considerably disrupting their farming activities. In Lofa County, rural Liberia's most affected area, the process of commodities, including food, increased from 30 to 75 per cent in August 2014.
"If not addressed now, the current impact of the outbreak on the livelihoods could lead to long-lasting impacts on farmers' livelihoods and rural economies."
US Deploys Troops To Fight Ebola Outbreak In Africa
The United States government will be deploying 100 troops from a special Marine response force to West Africa to help fight the Ebola outbreak, and these personnel will arrive in Senegal and Liberia within the next 24 hours, Pentagon press secretary Rear Admiral John Kirby said yesterday.
According to him, the 100 troops, mostly Marines, along with some Navy corpsmen, are part of a force of up to 3,600 U.S. troops that could deploy to West Africa to help efforts to stem the spread of the deadly Ebola virus.
So far, about 350 troops are on the ground now, running laboratories, setting up treatment facilities, training healthcare workers and assisting with logistics. He also said that the Marine unit would provide supply and transportation assistance for the anti-Ebola effort until Army units will arrive later this month to take over the possibly year-long mission.
Kirby further said that the troops, who come from a special Marine air-ground task force responding to crises in Africa, would deploy with four MV-22 Osprey and two KC-130 Hercules tanker aircraft.
Obama Calls For Urgent Actions To Curb Outbreak
After U.S. recorded its first Ebola death on Wednesday, President Barack Obama yesterday urged 1,500 state health leaders to do their best to prevent the spread of the virus.
Obama, who was reacting to the death of the country's first Ebola patient, called on all of America's health leaders to partner his administration in the fight against the deadly disease.
Speaking further, the president instructed local authorities to follow federal guidelines precisely to prepare for a potential rise in the cases of the deadly disease, stressing that it was crucial to respond with an appropriate sense of urgency.
Niger approves N173m, trains 1,400 in Ebola control, prevention
Niger State government said it has trained 1,400 health workers on the prevention of Ebola virus disease in the state, just as the state government has approved the sum of N173 million for the prevention of the disease in the state.
The state Commissioner of Education, Abdulhammeed Danladi Umar, and a director in the State Ministry of Health, Dr James Kolo, both disclosed this in a separate speech yesterday in Minna at a workshop organized by the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) on Ebola.
Abdulhammeed told the teachers that the state governor, Dr Muazu Babangida Aliyu, did not hesitate to approve N173 million for use to ensure that all precautionary measures are taken to prevent the spread of the disease to the state and raise awareness among the populace.
He said it was in that direction that some teachers, drawn from all the schools in the state, were trained on the Ebola virus disease to ensure preventive measures were put in place before the schools reopen next week.
"When we met with the minister of education, we thought the money for the control of the Ebola virus disease in schools will be extended to us, but I am surprised that we were not given any support; but it is our responsibility to protect life, that is why the governor approved N173 million."
The commissioner noted that it was because of the absence of such support that delayed the resumption of schools.
Chairman of the state chapter of Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT), Comrade Ibrahim Umar, said that in line with the directive of the national headquarters of the union, the members would not resume work until government provides safety gadgets against the spread of Ebola virus in the schools.
By Abiodun Oluwarotimi, Winifred Ogbebo and Victor Okeke
The Nigerian Army has revealed that about 1332 of its peace keeping troops in Liberia have been placed under surveillance following their contact with a Sudanese who later died of the Ebola Virus Disease (EVD).
The director of the Nigerian Army Medical Corps, Major-General Obashina Ogunbiyi stated this in Abuja yesterday.
According to the Army medical officer, the incident followed the death of a Sudanese Muslim man who had come to the camp of the soldiers to lead them in prayer during the Eid-el Fitri celebration, but developed Ebola symptoms the following day and later died. Ogunbuyi noted that the country remained at risk as any of the soldiers could choose to travel home anytime, saying "that is why the military had to be totally involved in the fight against the Ebola virus."
Nigeria To Produce Vaccines Within 1 Year
... Experts Brainstorm On Treatment, Receive 32 Treatment Claims
Health minister Prof Onyebuchi Chukwu has given the assurance that the country will start producing vaccines for Ebola within the next one year, adding that any disease that has a vaccine is as good as eradicated.
"Vaccine is very important, it is better than any drug but it takes time in terms of research to produce. Right now, we have a number of candidate vaccines and we are also going to be part of the clinical testing of Ebola vaccines," he said.
The minister made these revelations yesterday at the opening of a high level expert meeting on treatment and research for Ebola and other emerging infections in Abuja.
Chukwu added that there is a current need to also focus on diagnosis and the development of affordable and reliable rapid diagnostic test kits to facilitate early diagnosis of EVD and other infectious diseases
Meanwhile, the Ebola Treatment and Research Group (TRG) set up by the federal government said it had received 32 treatment claims for Ebola. The group stated that all of them are being evaluated as the country remains determined to find a possible drug or vaccine for the virus. The TRG, which was inaugurated on August 4, has the mandate to collate and analyse related research findings on Ebola, verify claims relating to the treatment of the virus and carry out research into its treatment.
The minister charged the research group to fashion out ways of protecting health workers beyond the current state of the art in cases of outbreaks like Ebola as they are the most vulnerable. Chukwu said the stakeholders' meeting was one in a series of efforts to ensure that suitable medicines for the treatment of EVD are evaluated and roadmap for achieving success adopted.
Earlier, the chairman, Senate Committee on Health, Senator Ifeanyi Okowa, had said that the Senate had instituted a public health legislation which had taken control of borders in the country, even as the international health regulations have been incorporated into the Public Health Act.
According to him, "This motion has passed through the first and second readings in the Senate and is currently at the House of Representatives, after which it will become law and repel the Quarantine Act of 1926 which is already obsolete."
In his contribution, one of the resource persons and associate professor at Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, Georgia, USA, where the US Ebola patients were treated, Dr Igho Ofotokun, asserted that there are no proven therapeutics for the virus in humans as only fluids, electrolytes and the experimental drugs were what the hospitals used in treating patients.
He said only approved personnel were allowed in the isolation wards. Narrating how the hospital was able to manage the patients, he encouraged all hospitals in the country to create and maintain a special isolation unit and to invest heavily in infectious diseases training. "We had problem with waste management, too. The central waste management authority did not allow us to dispose waste at the central area, so we had to decontaminate our own waste," he explained.
Ebola: FAO Launches Initiative To Fight Food Insecurity In West Africa
The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation yesterday launched a programme that will assist 90,000 Ebola-vulnerable households in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone.
The UN secretary-general, Mr. Ban Ki-moon, also announced the appointment of the respective UN crisis managers in the three countries hardest hit by the Ebola outbreak in West Africa, as part of the UN Mission for Ebola Emergency Response.
In their respective roles, the crisis managers will work with their host governments along with other partners to ensure a rapid international response to the Ebola crisis.
Speaking during the launch, head of FAO's Dakar-based Subregional Resilience Hub, the office coordinating the response for the countries whose food supply and livelihoods are threatened by the disruptive effect of the Ebola epidemic on rural economies, agricultural activities and markets, Mr Vincent Martin, said that the comprehensive response of the agency was part of overall United Nations' efforts to save lives and protect livelihoods.
On his part, Bukar Tijani, assistant director-general at the Regional Office for Africa, noted that these actions could not wait, as the outbreak was already reducing purchasing power of vulnerable households, which means less food on their plates and increased nutritional risks for families already on subsistence diets.
He added that fear and stigmatisation also threatened to reduce agricultural activities, thereby placing food security at risk.
The FAO, in a statement after the launching, said: "Early results from rapid assessments point to a worrisome situation. In Sierra Leone, for example, 47 per cent of the respondents said Ebola was considerably disrupting their farming activities. In Lofa County, rural Liberia's most affected area, the process of commodities, including food, increased from 30 to 75 per cent in August 2014.
"If not addressed now, the current impact of the outbreak on the livelihoods could lead to long-lasting impacts on farmers' livelihoods and rural economies."
US Deploys Troops To Fight Ebola Outbreak In Africa
The United States government will be deploying 100 troops from a special Marine response force to West Africa to help fight the Ebola outbreak, and these personnel will arrive in Senegal and Liberia within the next 24 hours, Pentagon press secretary Rear Admiral John Kirby said yesterday.
According to him, the 100 troops, mostly Marines, along with some Navy corpsmen, are part of a force of up to 3,600 U.S. troops that could deploy to West Africa to help efforts to stem the spread of the deadly Ebola virus.
So far, about 350 troops are on the ground now, running laboratories, setting up treatment facilities, training healthcare workers and assisting with logistics. He also said that the Marine unit would provide supply and transportation assistance for the anti-Ebola effort until Army units will arrive later this month to take over the possibly year-long mission.
Kirby further said that the troops, who come from a special Marine air-ground task force responding to crises in Africa, would deploy with four MV-22 Osprey and two KC-130 Hercules tanker aircraft.
Obama Calls For Urgent Actions To Curb Outbreak
After U.S. recorded its first Ebola death on Wednesday, President Barack Obama yesterday urged 1,500 state health leaders to do their best to prevent the spread of the virus.
Obama, who was reacting to the death of the country's first Ebola patient, called on all of America's health leaders to partner his administration in the fight against the deadly disease.
Speaking further, the president instructed local authorities to follow federal guidelines precisely to prepare for a potential rise in the cases of the deadly disease, stressing that it was crucial to respond with an appropriate sense of urgency.
Niger approves N173m, trains 1,400 in Ebola control, prevention
Niger State government said it has trained 1,400 health workers on the prevention of Ebola virus disease in the state, just as the state government has approved the sum of N173 million for the prevention of the disease in the state.
The state Commissioner of Education, Abdulhammeed Danladi Umar, and a director in the State Ministry of Health, Dr James Kolo, both disclosed this in a separate speech yesterday in Minna at a workshop organized by the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) on Ebola.
Abdulhammeed told the teachers that the state governor, Dr Muazu Babangida Aliyu, did not hesitate to approve N173 million for use to ensure that all precautionary measures are taken to prevent the spread of the disease to the state and raise awareness among the populace.
He said it was in that direction that some teachers, drawn from all the schools in the state, were trained on the Ebola virus disease to ensure preventive measures were put in place before the schools reopen next week.
"When we met with the minister of education, we thought the money for the control of the Ebola virus disease in schools will be extended to us, but I am surprised that we were not given any support; but it is our responsibility to protect life, that is why the governor approved N173 million."
The commissioner noted that it was because of the absence of such support that delayed the resumption of schools.
Chairman of the state chapter of Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT), Comrade Ibrahim Umar, said that in line with the directive of the national headquarters of the union, the members would not resume work until government provides safety gadgets against the spread of Ebola virus in the schools.
No comments:
Post a Comment