Covid-19: We can now test 3000 persons daily, NCDC declares

.Buhari urges task force to intensify contact tracing

.SGF appeals to Nigerians to embrace lockdown order

The Director-General of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), Dr. Chikwe Ihekweazu, has said that Nigeria can now carry out COVID-19 tests on at least 3000 persons daily.

Speaking during the briefing of the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 in Abuja on Wednesday, the NCDC boss said that the development followed the increase in number of testing laboratories in the country.

He disclosed that at the moment, there are 12 active testing laboratories in Nigeria.

He said that the target is to test 2000 samples in Lagos, 1000 in Abuja and in the rest of the country daily, of the right people who meet the case definition.

“We’re expanding our labs, we have provided states with sample collection kits and developing innovative methods to ensure testing.

“Ending of today, we are going to publish a testing and diagnostic strategy for the country so that everybody is aware of where we are and where we are going short and long term.

“That is, how we are going to introduce the TB facilities (GeneXpert Machines), HIV testing, and how we are going to end up with one lab per state”, he said.

On his part, the Minister of Health, Dr. Osagie Ehanire, explained that the Ministry has expanded the testing criteria to include cases with fever and respiratory tract symptoms.

To ensure maximum utilisation of our increased testing capacity, the minister said that the case definition and testing criteria have been expanded to include not only contacts of confirmed COVID-19 cases with fever and respiratory tract symptoms but also all persons with fever and respiratory tract symptoms of unknown cause.

“The advent of community transmission marks the evolution of our initial strictly containment strategy.

“Risk communication to the public and coordination with the state level COVID-19 response preparedness groups, are going to be scaled up.

“There is also an increased drive to detect cases more rapidly, especially in hotspot communities”, the minister said.

He added that a guideline has been produced by the FMoH accreditation committee to ensure that standards are maintained at all COVID-19 isolation and treatment centres across the country.

Meanwhile, President Muhammadu Buhari has asked the Presidential Task Force (PTF) on Covid-19 to intensify efforts in contact tracing of those infected with the virus to curb community transmission.

The president said this via a teleconference with members of the PTF on Covid-19 in Abuja on Wednesday.

He also asked the task force to flatten the curve of the virus as quick as possible in order to break the chain of the expected community transmission.

The chairman of the PTF on Covid-19, Mr. Boss Mustapha, told State House correspondents at the end of the teleconference that the president also challenged the PTF to flatten the curve of the virus as soon as possible.

Mustapha, who is also the Secretary to Government of the Federation, said: “In the last two weeks, we have reached where we are now and the President is conscious of the fact that we need to flatten the curve as quickly as possible.

”Be able to trace, find the people, conduct as numerous tests as we can and try as much as possible to break the chain of any community transmission.

“I can’t assure you that there won’t be transmission, there will definitely be transmission but if we are able to get ahead of it, then we can deal with it decisively.

“Some of the new measures that the President has introduced, he has asked a committee to look at how the economy will operate within the context of Covid-19.

“The other one is for the Presidential Task Force to work hand in hand with the Minister of Agriculture and the committees on food security and fertilizer to ensure that the adverse effect of Covid-19 on farming is reduced to the barest minimum.

“This is because the truth about it is that our people need to go back to their farms, so that we are able to raise sufficient food for the people. The strength of the nation is in its ability to feed itself.”

Earlier during the briefing by the Covid-19 PTF, the SGF, Boss Mustapha, appealed to Nigerians to embrace the lockdown imposed by governments at all levels to curb the spread of COVID-19 pandemic.

Mustapha made the appeal while answering questions on Wednesday in Abuja against the backdrop of some women who protested the lockdown in Delta State.

Mustapha said this was not the best of time to encourage resistance to the lockdown, adding that the move was to forestall further spread of the virus.

Recall that some women from Delta State had protested the state government announcement of the extension of the lockdown.

The SGF, who said that though the decision that precipitated the lockdown by the Federal Government only affected Lagos, FCT and Ogun states, noted that some states also took it upon themselves to do the needful by locking down their states.

“Delta State has power over its territory and the Governor saw the need to impose a lockdown to curb the virus,” he said.

According to him, President Buhari had alluded to the fact that the lockdown was a difficult decision, however, it was done in the interest of Nigerians.

”I urge Nigerians to see the benefits in the lockdown and I believe this appeal should be received with the best of intention.

“And as the president earlier said, we should not allow the recklessness of few to cause the death of all,” he said.

He said that some private sectors players who are importing goods into the country but had their goods hanging would get help from the government.

He assured that the government would consider their plight in term of demurrage.

The SGF said that the taskforce had gone further to embrace all sectors to proffer solution on how the country could overcome the COVID-19 pandemic.