President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has approved the establishment of a Presidential Task Force on Ebola Virus Disease Preparedness and Emerging Public Health Threats, alongside the immediate release of N10 billion in emergency intervention funding to strengthen Nigeria’s readiness against a potential outbreak.
According to a statement issued on Tuesday by the President’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, the fund will enhance the operational preparedness of the National Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) and support critical public health emergency response activities nationwide.
The newly established Presidential Task Force will be chaired by the President’s Chief of Staff, Femi Gbajabiamila, and will comprise representatives from relevant Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), as well as state governments.
The move follows renewed concerns over Ebola outbreaks recently reported in Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda, raising fears of possible cross-border transmission.
President Tinubu’s approval came after a high-level stakeholder meeting chaired by Gbajabiamila to assess Nigeria’s preparedness and formulate strategies to prevent the importation of the disease into the country.
The meeting brought together key stakeholders, including representatives of 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.
As part of the response measures, the President directed all states with international airports and border corridors, as well as relevant MDAs, to submit detailed preparedness plans, funding requirements, and intervention needs for coordinated implementation.
The Task Force has also been mandated to intensify passenger screening at all international airports through enhanced temperature checks and crowd-control measures. Authorities will further strengthen monitoring of passengers arriving through high-risk airline routes, including Air Uganda, RwandAir, Air Tanzania, Air Angola, Kenya Airways, and Ethiopian Airlines.
In addition, referral and isolation centres at the international airports in Lagos and Abuja are to be activated immediately, with similar arrangements expected at other airports across the country.
Other directives include the mandatory deployment of QR code-based pre-arrival health declaration systems for travellers arriving from or transiting through designated high-risk countries, as well as the routine disinfection of airport facilities, departure halls, cargo sections, and baggage handling areas.
The President further instructed the advisory group to engage security, diplomatic, and aviation authorities on measures to regulate flights originating from affected countries and other designated high-risk locations.
The Task Force is also expected to designate specific airports or terminals for high-risk flights to facilitate controlled screening and isolation procedures, while considering flight scheduling adjustments to minimise contact between high-risk travellers and other passengers.
The federal government said the measures are aimed at safeguarding public health and preventing a repeat of previous Ebola outbreaks in the