The Federal Government has approved ₦45.08 billion to set up a biosecurity and disease monitoring system at five international airports in Nigeria.
Health and Social Welfare Minister, Prof. Ali Pate, announced the approval after Wednesday’s Federal Executive Council meeting, chaired by President Bola Tinubu at the State House in Abuja.
The project will run for 20 years under a public-private partnership with the BioHealth Consortium. It is designed to help Nigeria detect new infectious diseases early and respond quickly to possible threats.
The system will be installed at international airports in Lagos, Abuja, Kano, Port Harcourt and Enugu. It will use technology to test aircraft wastewater, collect air and surface samples, and detect dangerous pathogens.
Pate said the network would track different pathogens that could pose a threat to public health. It will also improve cooperation among relevant agencies and strengthen disease control at the country’s borders.
The minister also gave an update on Nigeria’s Ebola situation, confirming that the patient diagnosed with the disease in October has recovered.
However, he said contact tracing and other measures to contain the virus were still ongoing to stop it from spreading within the community.
