Tinubu Approves N10bn Emergency Fund, Sets Up Presidential Task Force On Ebola Preparedness

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 to strengthen Nigeria’s emergency health response capacity.

The intervention comes amid renewed concerns over the resurgence of Ebola Virus Disease in parts of East Africa, particularly in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda, raising fears of possible cross-border transmission across the continent.

According to a statement issued by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, the emergency fund will support the operational readiness of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) and finance critical public health preparedness activities nationwide.

The newly constituted Presidential Task Force will be chaired by the President’s Chief of Staff Femi Gbajabiamila and will comprise representatives from key Ministries, Departments and Agencies as well as state governments.

The approval followed a high-level stakeholders' meeting convened by the Chief of Staff to assess Nigeria’s readiness and formulate strategies to prevent the importation and spread of Ebola and other emerging infectious diseases.

Participants at the meeting included representatives of the Ministry of Interior, Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Lagos State Government and other relevant institutions.

As part of immediate preventive measures, President Tinubu directed all states hosting international airports and major border corridors to submit detailed preparedness plans, funding requests and intervention requirements for coordinated implementation.

The Task Force has also been mandated to intensify health surveillance at all international gateways through enhanced temperature screening, passenger monitoring and crowd-control measures.

Special attention will be placed on passengers arriving through airline routes considered high-risk, including Air Uganda, RwandAir, Air Tanzania, Air Angola, Kenya Airways and Ethiopian Airlines.

The government further ordered the immediate activation of referral and isolation centres at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos and the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja, with plans to extend similar facilities to other airports across the country.

Additional directives include the compulsory deployment of QR code-based pre-arrival health declaration systems for travellers arriving from or transiting through designated high-risk countries.

Environmental health measures will also be strengthened through routine disinfection of airport terminals, cargo facilities, baggage handling areas and other sensitive locations.

President Tinubu directed the Task Force to work closely with aviation, diplomatic and security agencies in reviewing travel arrangements from affected regions, including the possibility of designating specific airports and terminals for flights originating from high-risk countries.

The administration says the measures are designed to ensure early detection, containment and response should any public health threat emerge, while safeguarding Nigeria against another large-scale infectious disease outbreak.