NCDC tok say ₦10bn Ebola fund dey cover oda outbreaks, na only 2% of wetin dem need
- NCDC oga Jide Idris tok say di ₦10bn wey dem approve in June 2026 na for plenty diseases wey fit cause epidemic, no be Ebola alone.
- E tok say di money go to NCDC, no be di presidential Ebola task force, and e be like two per cent of wetin dem need every year.
- Nigeria no get any active Ebola case, but dem still dey watch contacts for 21 days, Idris tok.
Di Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) don move to clear di confusion over di ₦10 billion emergency fund wey President Bola Tinubu approve, dey tok say di money no be for Ebola alone.
For one statement on Monday, NCDC Director-General Dr Jide Idris tok say dem request di fund to strong di country defence against plenty diseases wey dey always threaten Nigerians. Dem include Ebola, Lassa fever, cholera, cerebrospinal meningitis, diphtheria, measles, mpox and antimicrobial resistance.
Di clarification come after Nigeria confirm one imported case of Bundibugyo Ebola virus disease on October 20, 2026, na im first in 12 years. Dat confirmation cause public debate about how dem approve di ₦10 billion and where e go.
Where di money go
Idris tok say dem release di fund directly to NCDC and no be to di Presidential Task Force on Ebola Virus Disease, wey di Chief of Staff to di President dey chair. Di task force, e explain, dem set am up to coordinate di national response, while di agency dey handle di wider health security work.
E tok say President Tinubu approve di ₦10 billion in June 2026, when di Ebola outbreak for Democratic Republic of Congo become global emergency.
According to di NCDC boss, di agency funding dey rise: from ₦4 billion in 2024 to ₦7 billion in 2025, plus ₦5 billion intervention dat year. Di 2026 Appropriation provide ₦22 billion.
Even so, Idris argue say ₦10 billion small compared to wetin Nigeria actually need. E put di cost of di National Action Plan for Health Security (NAPHS 2.0), wey run from 2025 to 2029, at about ₦522 billion over five years, or roughly ₦104.4 billion a year.
On dat basis, di ₦10 billion cover only about two per cent of di yearly requirement.
E also cite di Global Preparedness Monitoring Board, wey estimate say a country need $1 to $2 per person each year to dey reasonably prepared for epidemics. For Nigeria population of about 240 million, dat work out to between $240 million and $480 million annually.
"Di ₦10 billion allocation remain inadequate to meet Nigeria broader health security needs," Idris tok.
No active Ebola case, but contacts still dey watched
On di outbreak itself, Idris tok say Nigeria no get active Ebola case as of di time of di statement. Dem confirm di imported case for laboratory on October 20, within 24 hours of an alert for Abuja.
E tok say all identified contacts dey under daily monitoring and say surveillance go continue until di last contact complete di 21-day observation period without symptoms.
"We never comot from di woods," e tok.
Idris tok say di current situation no justify to postpone elections, ban mass gatherings or restrict travel. Instead, NCDC don issue guidelines for organisers of large events so dem fit go ahead safely.
E urge Nigerians to check information through di agency official channels before dem share am, warning say rumours and panic fit weaken di response.
"Ebola na health threat, no be political tool, and science, no be rumour, go lead dis response," e tok.
Wetin go happen next: NCDC tok say dem go keep updating di public on di Ebola response and on how dem dey use di intervention fund. Di 21-day contact monitoring period go determine when Nigeria fit be declared free of di current scare.
