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ECOWAS: Nigeria, Niger Republic collaborate to combat disease outbreaks
By Matthew Denis
As part of proactive steps to combat disease outbreak within the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), Nigeria and Niger Republic commences surveillance meetings initiated by the West Africa Health Organization (WAHO).
Data has indicated that thousands of people lost their lives over the Lassa fever outbreak in the early months of 2024 among the ECOWAS countries. disease suspected to be heavy metal poisoning in Sokoto state, reported on March 20, 2024, began in Isa Local Government Area (LGA).
The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) revealed that the symptoms include abdominal pain, abdominal distension, vomiting, fever, and breathing difficulty, affecting mainly children and young adults. The suspected cases have been reported to other five LGAs; Illela, Sabon Birni, Tambuwal, Gwadabawa, and Dange Shuni.
Speaking to Newsmen on the importance of the Programme on Tuesday, the Technical Advisor for Cross Border Surveillance, Dr. Aisha Usman said “We are here to share experiences and also to identify some of the gaps the two countries can work on with a joint action plan that helps in containing some of the outbreaks that we had in the last one year and the one that is currently ongoing on the suspected heavy metal poisoning in the two countries.
“This is not the maiden edition, WAHO has been organizing other meetings among member States in the region depending on who shares borders with World Health Organization (WHO)
“Currently we have an outbreak between Niger and Nigeria which is the suspected heavy metal poisoning and we are here in this meeting to know what is the current status from each country, what are the intervention put in place, and how can we improve on that, what support is required from WAHO to support the two countries,” Usman said.
The Minister of Health, Prof Ali Pate, noted that with a population of over 230 million people, Nigeria cannot fight infectious disease outbreaks that transcend national borders alone, particularly given the spill-over of huge populations from neighboring countries.
The Minister, who was represented by the Director, Port Health Services in the Ministry of Health, Dr. Akpan Nseobong, described the cross-border surveillance meeting as very important considering that since Nigeria and Niger Republic share borders, anything that happens to any of the two countries affects the other.
He commended WAHO and the ECOWAS Regional Centre for Surveillance and Disease Control (RCSDC) and partners like the World Health Organisation (WHO), United States Centre for Disease Control (CDC), UNICEF and USAID for their support while appealing for collaboration with Nigeria to tackle the growing public health challenges.
“We will continue to appeal to our partners for more support because given the size of our country, once Nigeria is able to contain these diseases, the whole of West Africa and indeed Africa will be safe,” he said.
On his part, Director of Public Health, Sokoto Ministry of Health, Dr. Abdulganiyu Yusuf, emphasised the importance of environmental checks and preventive measures, such as ensuring safe water and soil quality.
“The heavy metal poisoning started in Nigeria, especially from Sokoto State where we first reported it about three months ago, precisely in March. Initially it was called an unknown disease but thanks to God, recently it has been diagnosed as multiple heavy metal poisons.
“So that is exactly what we are doing but we heard that Niger Republic has also started finding cases in their places so for that reason, the two countries are affected.
“There are preventive measures, this has to do with heavy metals poisoning, usually we have to look into our environment, the water we take, the soil we cultivate on and what have you. So there are things that have been put in place to ensure that you know, these things are curtailed.
“We have to look into water because water is one of the sources of these heavy metals poisoning, so the state government is trying through the ministry of Water Resources to chat way in how this water will either be trucked, there is what we call water trucking, to supply water or better still look for areas where boreholes or wells can be dugg so that water that doesn’t contain heavy metals can be used by the people.
“And then as well the soil. Some of the things that we have tested, like the food crops, traces of these metals have been found in these crops, so there is also an intention to consider how soil can probably be excavated in those areas.
”For Sokoto State, there has not been any pinpointed place where this mining activities take place but we wouldn’t know if such things take place in a hidden way that we have not been able to find but mining in Zamfara, yes, Sokoto, we have not reported any case of mining.”
The Director of Public Health Services, Zamfara State Ministry of Health, Dr. Yusuf Abubakar, noted the significance of the meeting, given the shared borders between Nigeria and Niger. “Whatever affects Zamfara or Sokoto States will inevitably impact Niger Republic.
According to her the gathering coordinates activities and information sharing, which is crucial for disease control and outbreak response.
Dr. Abubakar expressed concerns over the rising incidence of heavy metal poisoning, emphasizing the need for coordinated action plans and interventions.
”The meeting aims to develop a work plan for both countries to address this and other health issues, including diphtheria, meningitis, and cholera,” he said.
The highlights of the event which kicked off in Abuja on Tuesday brought together health experts and officials from both countries, aimed to enhance collaboration, share information, and develop joint action plans to address public health emergencies.
Recall that the West African region has faced various public health challenges, including infectious disease outbreaks such as Ebola, Lassa fever, measles, and COVID-19 that transcend national borders, thus the importance of cross-border collaboration in disease surveillance and response.
The Republic of Niger and Sokoto State Nigeria share common borders, facilitating the movement of people, goods, and animals across these boundaries. The proximity of these countries increases the risk of infectious diseases spreading rapidly across borders, emphasising the need for a coordinated and collaborative approach to disease surveillance.
The Speaker of Edo House of Assembly, Mr Blessing Agbebaku has called on the Federal Government to declare a state of emergency on substance abuse and illicit drugs trafficking in Nigeria.
The speaker, made the call in Benin while addressing a rally organised by Smile Africa International Youth Initiative, an NGO, to mark the 2024 International Day against Drug Abuse.
“I am sad and concerned about the drug abuse pandemic the country is grappling with; and we should be passionate about the health of our youths,” he said.
The participants of the rally were at the Edo State House of Assembly to mark the day usually celebrated on June 26 every year.
Agbebaku who was represented by the Deputy Speaker, Mrs Maria Oligbi-Edeko, said a state of emergency was the only solution towards tackling the menace.
Agbebaku said that drug abuse and illicit drug trafficking were the bane of criminality in the state and nation at large.
The speaker described drug traffickers as the worst criminals that should not be tolerated in any community that wants to make progress.
He explained that hard drugs presents multifaceted challenges that touch the lives of millions of people, adding that the impact of drug abuse is far-reaching and complex.
Agbebaku listed some of the problems associated with drug abuse to include individual struggling with substance use disorders and struggle with consequences of drug trafficking and crimes.
“If you have been following the house activities, you would know that the house has passed several resolutions on the need to prevent drug abuse and trafficking.
“Today, we are sad that drug is destroying communities in the country and everyone is pretending not to see it.
“Drugs are now being sold freely in certain locations in the state and yet not much is being done to check the menace,’’ he said.
The speaker suggested that the federal government should declare a state of emergency to effectively deal with the situation.
Agbebaku assured that the house would join to carry out sustained enlightenment campaigns against drug abuse and illicit trafficking.
“Taking to drugs is a journey of no return; rehabilitation does not often solve the problem, so we need to speak out to prevent our children from the menace,’’ he said.
Earlier, the Executive Director of Smiles Africa International Youth Development Initiative, Mr Purpose Iserhienrhien, said they were at the assembly complex in support of the fight against drug abuse and illicit trafficking in the state.
Iserhienrhien said that the day afforded them the opportunity to call for collective action to combat the scourge of drug abuse and illicit trafficking.
“The impacts of drugs extend beyond individual users to the entire societies; it threatens the health, safety and prosperity of our population,” he said.
The speaker called on the state government to invest in prevention programmes to address the challenges posed by drug abuse.
Dangote Industries Ltd. has confirmed a minor fire incident at its Effluent Treatment Plant (ETP) in Lagos on Wednesday and which was swiftly contained.
Mr Anthony Chiejina, the Group Head of Corporate Communications at Dangote Group, disclosed this in a statement in Lagos.
Chiejina said: “There is no cause for alarm as the refinery is operating and there is no recorded injury or harm to any of our staff on duty.”
He said that emergency services responded on time to contain the incident.
Although initial reports said no injuries were sustained.
According to him, the cause of the fire is currently unknown, and investigations are underway to determine the extent of the damage and the cause of the incident.
The Dangote Refinery is a massive project with a projected refining capacity of 650,000 barrels per day.
A section of Dangote Refinery is currently engulfed by fire.
Explosions were heard on Wednesday after a major fire outbreak at the refinery located at the Ibeju-Lekki area of Lagos State.
As of the time of filing this report, the Dangote group has yet to react to the fire outbreak.
Recall that Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote had disclosed that he fought and overcame a strong group of local and foreign mafia before establishing the $19 billion refinery.
Dangote said the mafia in the oil sector, who are stronger than those doing drugs, did everything they could to sabotage the refinery project.
Speaking at the Afreximbank annual meeting and AfriCaribbean Trade and Investment Forum in the Bahamas recently, Dangote said he never anticipated that the resistance would be harsh.
Meanwhile, Anambra South Senator, Ifeanyi Ubah, recently said Danote’s refinery will lead to a reduction in the pump price of petroleum products.
Ubah said when oil refineries in Nigeria start operating at full capacity, the price of fuel will reduce.
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