NCDC: COVID pandemic created opportunity to strengthen Nigeria’s health system

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) says the COVID pandemic created an opportunity for Nigeria to strengthen its health system.

The NCDC said this on Sunday in a statement to mark two years since Nigeria’s first COVID case.

Nigeria’s index case of COVID-19 flew into the country from Milan, Italy, on February 25 and subsequently tested positive for the virus.

The agency said while the pandemic has had devastating effects on lives, it highlighted gaps in global outbreak preparedness.

“Nigeria announced its first confirmed case of COVID-19 on February 27, 2020. Two years on, it has been a journey of working tirelessly, with the presidential task force (PTF) now presidential steering committee on COVID-19, to mitigate the impact of the pandemic amidst the response to other disease outbreaks e.g. cholera, yellow fever, Lassa fever,” the statement reads.

“With over 250,000 confirmed cases and 3,142 deaths reported to date, the pandemic has highlighted the gaps in global outbreak preparedness.

“This reinforces our focus to think beyond COVID-19 and strengthen preparedness and response to other diseases in line with our mandate.

“There is no doubt that the pandemic has had devastating impacts, both direct & indirect, on the lives & livelihoods of Nigerians. It has also created an opportunity to strengthen our health system in the areas of surveillance, laboratory services, case management, IPC, and so on.

“We recognise the work done by our health workers at the frontline & behind the scenes, in often difficult circumstances, with concurrent disease outbreaks We remain grateful for the sacrifice and dedication of all stakeholders, MDAs & partners to protect the health of Nigerians

“We must awaken to the reality that COVID-19 is one out of numerous public health emergencies that we face. We must continue to invest in improving Nigeria’s health security for current and future public health emergencies.”