By Fatima Saka
The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) has defended the Federal Government’s ₦10 billion emergency intervention fund, insisting that the allocation is designed to strengthen Nigeria’s preparedness against multiple disease outbreaks, not Ebola Virus Disease alone.
The Director-General of NCDC, Dr Jide Idris, said the funding was sought to improve the country’s capacity to prevent, detect and respond to epidemic-prone diseases, including Lassa fever, cholera, cerebrospinal meningitis, diphtheria, measles, monkeypox and antimicrobial resistance.
Idris, in a statement issued on Monday, explained that the ₦10 billion was approved by President Bola Tinubu in June 2026, following the outbreak of Ebola in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, but was intended to address broader national health security needs.
He clarified that the money was released directly to NCDC and not to the Presidential Task Force on Ebola Virus Disease, which was established primarily to coordinate the national response.
The NCDC boss said the funding debate had generated misleading narratives, warning political actors and public commentators against turning public health emergencies into partisan controversies.
According to him, the ₦10 billion allocation remains inadequate when measured against Nigeria’s wider health security requirements.
He disclosed that the implementation of Nigeria’s National Action Plan for Health Security (NAPHS 2.0), covering 2025 to 2029, would require approximately ₦522 billion over five years, representing an average annual cost of ₦104.4 billion.
He noted that the ₦10 billion intervention fund represents only about two per cent of the plan’s average annual implementation cost.
Idris said Nigeria, with a population exceeding 240 million, requires sustained investment to strengthen its disease surveillance, emergency preparedness, early detection and rapid response systems.
He cited estimates by the Global Preparedness Monitoring Board, which indicate that countries need between one and two dollars per person annually to achieve an acceptable level of epidemic preparedness.
Based on Nigeria’s population, he said the country would require between $240 million and $480 million annually to adequately prepare for epidemics.
The NCDC Director-General disclosed that the agency’s budgetary allocation increased from ₦4 billion in 2024 to ₦7 billion in 2025, alongside a ₦5 billion intervention fund in 2025 and ₦22 billion provided in the 2026 Appropriation.
He attributed the increased funding consideration to sustained advocacy for stronger national health security, particularly under the Federal Government’s Nigeria Health Sector Renewal Investment Initiative.
On the ongoing Ebola response, Idris said Nigeria had recorded one imported case of Bundibugyo Ebola virus disease, which was confirmed in the NCDC laboratory on October 20, 2026, within 24 hours of receiving the alert in Abuja.
He said all identified contacts were being monitored daily, adding that Nigeria currently had no active Ebola case.
However, he cautioned that the country was not yet completely out of danger, as surveillance would continue until the last identified contact completed the 21-day monitoring period without developing symptoms.
Addressing concerns over public gatherings, election campaigns and travel restrictions, Idris said the current situation did not warrant postponing elections, banning mass gatherings or restricting movement.
He explained that NCDC had not recommended any such measures but had developed technical guidelines for organisers of mass gatherings to ensure compliance with infection prevention, control and safety protocols.
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He urged Nigerians to remain vigilant without panic, avoid spreading unverified information and rely on the agency’s official communication channels for updates.
The NCDC chief reaffirmed the agency’s commitment to transparency, accountability and the responsible utilisation of public funds, stressing that adequate investment in health security was necessary to prevent outbreaks from escalating into national emergencies with devastating human and economic consequences.
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