₦airaland Forum

Nigeria was the first sub-Saharan country to report an official case of coronavirus, when an Italian working in the country came back from Milan on February 24 carrying the virus.

Whether it's a matter of faulty detection, climatic factors or simple fluke, the remarkably low rate of coronavirus infection in African countries, with their fragile health systems, continues to puzzle – and worry – experts.

To date, only three cases of infection have been officially recorded in Africa, one in Egypt, one in Algeria and one in Nigeria, with no deaths. This is a remarkably small number for a continent with nearly 1.3 billion inhabitants, and barely a drop in the ocean of more than 86,000 cases and nearly 3,000 deaths recorded in some 60 countries worldwide.

Shortly after the virus appeared, specialists warned of the risks of its spreading in Africa, because of the continent’s close commercial links with Beijing and the fragility of its medical services.

“Our biggest concern continues to be the potential for Covid-19 to spread in countries with weaker health systems,” Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the head of the World Health Organization, told African Union health ministers gathered in the Ethiopian capital of Addis Ababa on February 22.

In a study published in The Lancet medical journal on the preparedness and vulnerability of African countries against the importation of Covid-19, an international team of scientists identified Algeria, Egypt and South Africa as the most likely to import new coronavirus cases into Africa, though they also have the best prepared health systems in the continent and are the least vulnerable.

‘Nobody knows’ As to why the epidemic is not more widespread in the continent, “nobody knows”, said Professor Thumbi Ndung’u, from the African Institute for Health Research in Durban, South Africa.
“Perhaps there is simply not that much travel between Africa and China.”

But Ethiopian Airlines, the largest African airline, never suspended its flights to China since the epidemic began, and China Southern on Wednesday resumed its flights to Kenya.

And, of course, people carrying coronavirus could enter the country from any of the other 60-odd countries with known cases. Favourable climate factors have also been raised as a possibility.

“Perhaps the virus doesn’t spread in the African ecosystem, we don’t know,” said Professor Yazdan Yazdanpanah, head of the infectious diseases department at Bichat hospital in Paris.

This hypothesis was rejected by Professor Rodney Adam, who heads the infection control task force at the Aga Khan University Hospital in Nairobi, Kenya. “There is no current evidence to indicate that climate affects transmission,” he said.

“While it is true that for certain infections there may be genetic differences in susceptibility...there is no current evidence to that effect for Covid-19.”

Nigeria well-equipped

The study in The Lancet found that Nigeria, a country at moderate risk of contamination, is also one of the best-equipped in the continent to handle such an epidemic

But the scientists had not anticipated that the first case recorded in sub-Saharan Africa would be an Italian working in the country.
Little more than a week ago, “our model was based on an epidemic concentrated in China, but since then the situation has completely changed, and the virus can now come from anywhere,” Mathias Altmann, an epidemiologist at the University of Bordeaux and one of the co-authors of the report, told FRANCE 24 on Friday.

The short shelf-life of studies testify to the speed of the epidemic’s spread. The Italian who tested positive for the coronavirus in Lagos had arrived from Milan on February 24 but had no symptoms when his plane landed. He was quarantined four days later at the Infectious Disease Hospital in Yaba.

Several people from the company where he works have been contacted and officials are trying to trace other people with whom he might have had contact.

For Altmann, an expert in infectious diseases in developing countries, the fact that coronavirus appears to have entered sub-Saharan Africa through Nigeria is “actually good news”, because the country appears to be relatively well prepared for confronting the situation.

In a continent that “has had its share of epidemics and whose countries, therefore, have a huge knowledge of the field and real competence to react to this kind of situation”, Nigeria is in a very good position to confront the arrival of Covid-19, Altmann said.

“The CDC [Center for Disease Control] responsible for the entire region of West and Central Africa is located in Abuja, the capital of Nigeria, which means that their organisational standard in health matters is very high,” he added.

The country was already renowned for “succeeding to pretty quickly contain the Ebola epidemic in 2014,” Altmann points out. It took the Nigerian authorities only three months to eradicate Ebola in the country. The World Health Organization and the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control at the time congratulated Nigeria for its reactivity and “world-class epidemiological detective work”.

But despite Nigeria’s strengths, the coronavirus pathogen represents a particular challenge, in that it is hard to detect. The virus may be present in an individual who has few or no symptoms, allowing it to spread quietly in a country where, like everywhere in Africa, there is “a shortage of equipment compared to Western countries, especially in diagnostic tools”, Altmann said.
Neighbouring countries like Chad or Niger have “less functional capacity to handle an epidemic,” Altmann said.

But they also have an advantage: these are agricultural regions where people are outdoors more, “and viruses like this one prefer closed spaces and are less likely to spread in a rural setting,” he added.

OrestesDante:

Does this look like a place for containment to you?

Whether fake Italian or not.... If this is the type of stuff we have around the country to handle this, then we should all brace up for a real battle for life!!! More facemasks will be sold, more sanitizers will be sold. Get my point of view!

OrestesDante:


∆
See it! Fully equipped.
The drawing on the wall is a visual placebo!!!

See where dem want put coronavirus patient?
These people are mad. The whole country will be infected in a matter of weeks if this is a typical Corona virus hospital

Until we see the picture of the Italian being quarantined.

Coronavirus for Nigeria na scam!!!

∆

The Federal Government has urged Nigerians to embrace unity and de-emphasis ethnicity, religion, social status.

Lai Mohammed, Minister of Information and Culture said the activities of Boko Haram insurgents would reduce when Nigerians embrace unity.

He noted that through unity, Boko Haram and “unscrupulous politicians” won’t be able to use religion to divide the country.

Mohammed spoke at the 70th Anniversary of Government College in Keffi, Nasarawa State, on Saturday and was contained in a statement signed and sent by his Media Aide, Segun Adeyemi.

He stated that if Nigerians would allow themselves to be guided by the Keffi Model, the “present atmosphere of disunity at all levels – religious, ethnic, regional, etc – will disappear and peace will return to the nation.”

While urging Nigerians to emulate and revive the ‘Keffi spirit’, the Minister expressed the belief that if Nigerians do that, the nation would have “succeeded in reducing to the barest minimum the areas of friction and today’s atmosphere of ethnic and religious suspicion, disunity,etc, will cease to exist.”

“Boko Haram insurgents will no longer be able to use religion as a source of division. Unscrupulous politicians will no longer be able to divide us using ethnicity,” Alhaji Mohammed said.

Mohammed had insisted that Boko Haram terrorists were targeting Christians and their worship centres.

Mohammed had alleged that the insurgents were trying to divide the country along religious lines, hence the target of Christians in the Northeast.

wwwihy:
In term of infrastructures, No President could compete with President Buhari

Sammy07:
I've you finish improving your Abia state

Okoroawusa:
I Love PMB

The Federal Ministry of Works and Housing has announced the partial closure of the Independence Bridge in Lagos.

A statement by Mr Adedamola Kuti, Federal Controller of Works, Lagos said the closure is to ensure routine maintenance till May 2 to replace damaged expansion joints.

He appealed to road users to use alternative routes.
Motorists have been advised to make use of alternative route such as Falomo Bridge, NAN reports.

“As part of the National Bridge Maintenance Programme of the Federal Government, the Federal Ministry of Works and Housing has embarked on the maintenance of Independence Bridge, the bridge linking Bonny Camp and Onikan in Lagos.

“The maintenance has reached the stage of replacement of worn out expansion joints and laying of Asphaltic concrete wearing course between 1st March and 2nd May, 2020.

“To accomplish this phase of work, there will be partial closure of the bridge. This may lead to delay in travel time.
“ All inconveniences are highly regretted,” Kuti said.

Governor disowns case

[b]Speaking to PREMIUM TIMES by telephone, a spokesperson for Mr Yahaya said the governor was not behind the travail of the two PDP members.

“This is not true. The governor did not order the arrest of anybody. If they have issues, it must be with another person, not the governor,” Abdullahi Misilli said Sunday morning.[/b]

So, who now ordered the arrest?

yarimo:
Mteeeww

Amitez:
God really protected South South from the APC and their RUGA.

Governor Douye Diri of Bayelsa State has warned members of the opposition All Progressives Congress, APC, that he will now deploy the full weight of the law if they refuse to accept his olive branch.

The Governor, who said the opposition party must realise that he is now on the seat of power, also donated the N40 million awarded to him and his deputy Senator Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo, by the Supreme Court to the church.

The Supreme Court had on Wednesday, while dismissing the application filed by the APC for the review of its earlier judgement that sacked David Lyon as the governor-elect of the State, fined Afe Babalola (SAN) and Wole Olanipekun (SAN) lawyers to the applicants and ordered them to pay the respondents.

Governor Diri, during a special thanksgiving service at the King of Glory Chapel, Government House, Yenagoa, said he and his deputy are donating the money, amounting to N40 million to the church.

Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Daniel Alabrah, in a statement, said that the well attended service tagged: “Victory thanksgiving” was put together to appreciate God for His intervention.

Diri added, “What has happened only proves the fact that there is a God that rules in the affairs of men. His decisions are final and supreme.

“There is no Supreme Court greater than the supreme court of God. He gave that judgment through the learned justices and some people felt they had to question Him.

“And God spoke through that woman that delivered the judgment. According to her, who are you to question the supremacy of the Supreme Court?

“And so for desecrating the temple of justice, a cost of N10 million each was imposed on two of the senior lawyers that represented the other party to be paid to three of the respondents, which included me and my deputy.

“Without even consulting my deputy, I have decided that both of us will surrender our N20 million each, that is N40 million, to the work of God in the church.”

The Governor underscored the need for APC members in the state to embrace the olive branch extended to them for the sake of peace and sustainable development.

He said some opposition elements in the State were still bent on fomenting trouble over the victory of the PDP at the Supreme Court.

“As a people, let us learn to move ourselves upward. We need to build on the prevailing peace in this state so that investors can come in and we can also create employment for our young ones who want to work,” Diri said.

“That is why we have offered the olive branch and we expect them all to accept it. But for those who refuse to accept it, but rather are planning evil, they should realize that we are now on the seat of power. We have every information at our disposal.”

"Be going kee you there"

Awol1:
Unapologetically catholic.

The church is wise.

Which kind India.

Someone cannot be Fair in complexion again..