Ebola: Govt Assures Nigerians, Says Surveillance Systems Activated To Contain Virus

The Federal Government has assured Nigerians of its preparedness to include the Ebola virus illness, saying surveillance techniques, contact tracing and isolation measures have been activated following the detection of an imported case.

The assurance was given by the Chairman of the Presidential Task Force on Ebola Preparedness, Virus Disease Preparedness and Emerging Public Health Threats, and Chief of Staff to the President, Rt. Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila, after an emergency assembly of the duty power on the State House on Wednesday.

According to a State House press launch issued on October 21, 2026, by Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Gbajabiamila stated the duty power had been working behind the scenes since its inauguration in June to strengthen the nation’s preparedness towards Ebola and different rising public well being threats.

He attributed the early detection of the index case to surveillance measures and protocols applied by the Ministry of Health and different related companies.

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Gbajabiamila disclosed that Nigeria had recorded about 44,000 flights into and in another country since considerations over Ebola emerged in June, stressing that the nation’s surveillance and identification procedures had helped detect the imported case.

He defined that the passenger initially confirmed no signs, which developed 4 days after the girl arrived in Abuja. He stated established identification procedures and public well being protocols enabled authorities to establish the case.
The activity power chairman stated the federal government would strengthen current protocols and intensify enforcement to enhance the nation’s response.

“The Task Force is on top of it. NCDC is on top of it; everyone is on deck,” he stated, urging Nigerians to cooperate with public well being authorities and keep away from panic.
He additionally emphasised the necessity to construct public belief, describing the containment effort as a joint accountability of the federal government and residents.

The Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Mohammed Ali Pate, stated Nigeria had competent well being authorities and established surveillance techniques able to responding to the outbreak.
Pate listed the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC), immigration and aviation authorities, non-public healthcare suppliers and state-level well being companies among the many establishments concerned within the response.

He stated authorities have been conducting contact tracing and isolating people who had come into contact with the index case.
According to the minister, the Federal Government, working with the World Health Organisation (WHO), the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) and the NCDC, had activated the incident administration system throughout related response areas.
He added that hospitals had additionally activated their response capabilities to assist efforts to include the case.

“We will continue to do that, and we want to reassure Nigerians that the federal government, alongside its technical partners, the World Health Organisation, the Africa Centre for Disease Control, and our own Nigeria Centre for Disease Control, have activated the incident management system across the various pillars,” Pate stated.
The minister famous that almost all states had sufficient response plans and that the federal government was mobilising out there assets to strengthen the nationwide response.
He, nevertheless, warned that the federal government wouldn’t relent in its containment efforts, urging residents to adjust to public well being directives.

Pate additionally cautioned Nigerians towards spreading misinformation and unverified stories in regards to the illness, warning that rumours may set off pointless public panic.

He expressed confidence within the expertise of Nigerian public well being professionals, recalling their position in containing Ebola in 2014 and supporting response efforts in different nations.

The minister stated the continued collaboration between authorities companies and worldwide well being companions could be vital to containing the present case.

The emergency assembly was attended by representatives of the Nigeria Immigration Service, the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), the WHO, Africa CDC and well being authorities from the Federal Capital Territory and Lagos State, amongst different officers.

Other individuals included the Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Immigration Service, Kemi Nandap; FAAN Managing Director, Bunmi Kuku; WHO Representative, Pavel Ursu; and the Special Regional Representative to the Director-General of Africa CDC, Dr. Aliko Ahmed.
The assembly additionally included officers from the State House Medical Centre, the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, and the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority.
The Federal Government urged Nigerians to stay calm, observe official public well being steering and cooperate with well being authorities as efforts proceed to include the imported case.