…Dangote, Elumelu, others pledge support
To get Nigeria adequately prepared against outbreak of infectious diseases like Ebola, Lassa Fever and others through a multi-sectoral approach, stakeholders in the private sector have pledged to support the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), to achieve health security in the country.
According to the centre, given the enormous challenges posed by epidemics in achieving improved health, as well as considerable economic losses as evidenced by previous disease outbreaks like Ebola, there is an urgent need to rethink the country’s approach to health security, and galvanize key players to strengthen existing efforts and build a more resilient health system with more effective epidemic preparedness and response mechanism.
To achieve health security in the country, the centre, in partnership with key stakeholders under the aegis of Private Sector Health Alliance of Nigeria (PSHAN), recently launched the Alliance for Epidemic Preparedness and Response (A4EPR) in Lagos, with the objective of getting the private sector involved in combating infectious diseases through effective collaboration.
The alliance has in its fold key industry players like Dangote Group Plc., MTN Nigeria, Total Nigeria, Shell Foundation and Tony Elumelu Foundation, among others.
Speaking at a roundtable discussion during the launch, Minister of Health, Prof. Isaac Adewole, said Nigeria was lucky to have contained the Ebola outbreak in 2014 through a reactionary measure, but must now guard against any possible outbreak through a proactive measure and
teamwork.
“We must be ready on permanent basis and all year round. And we must be prepared for the next disease outbreak and be ready for early detection and response.
“To do that, we require financial commitment from the private health sector. So, we require teamwork, collaboration and the resources of the private health sector to succeed,” he
said.
In his remarks, Chief Executive Officer of NCDC, Dr. Chikwe Ihekweazu, urged the stakeholders to support the Federal Government efforts in the area of financial investment through the centre. He revealed that the centre requires N4 billion to tackle outbreak of
diseases.
Ihekweazu noted that the aim of A4EPR is to develop a formal structure for the private sector to support the Nigerian government through NCDC in the prevention, preparedness, detection, response and control of outbreaks in
Nigeria.
He said the alliance was designed to address priority areas in health security, focusing on building the capacity to protect the health of Nigerians.
Also, Chief Executive Officer of PSHAN, Dr. Muntaqa Umar-Sadiq, expressed optimism that the new initiative would serve as a secure and sustainable platform for public-private partnerships in Nigeria’s health sector, affirming that in the next year, A4EPR would work towards securing commitments from the private sector to achieve its
objectives.
The stakeholders concluded that the new approach was necessary, considering that the last Ebola outbreak in 2014 and the recent outbreaks of Lassa fever, Monkey pox, yellow fever, cholera and meningitis have caused significant strain on the nation’s public health
sector.
Representatives from Dangote Foundation, Total E&P, MTN Foundation, Tony Elumelu Foundation and other key players in the private health sector, pledged their support, stressing that outbreaks have devastating impact that must not be ignored, “as they affect the country’s economy through loss of labour, reduced productivity and inefficiency of
businesses.”
