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The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) has approved an emergency payment of N100,000 per person weekly for individuals placed in isolation or quarantine as part of efforts to contain the Ebola outbreak in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
The Director-General of the NCDC, Dr Jide Idris, disclosed this at a press briefing in Abuja on Sunday, saying the financial support was introduced to address concerns raised by people identified as contacts of Nigeria’s confirmed Ebola patient.
Idris explained that some contacts had complained about the financial burden of feeding themselves, paying for accommodation and maintaining their families while complying with mandatory public health monitoring.
“We are paying for their accommodation; we are paying for their feeding. Some of them are asking for a stipend to maintain their families,” he said.
He added that the agency had approved N100,000 per person weekly to provide additional support during the monitoring period.
“We are providing N100,000 per person per week just to maintain their comfort and feeding, because they were complaining,” Idris said.
Emergency support for contacts
The NCDC chief described the payment as an emergency intervention that was not included in the agency’s original response plan but had become necessary to address the concerns of affected individuals.
“This was not planned for, but it is an emergency. We will continue to review it as we go along,” he said.
According to Idris, the financial assistance is intended to reduce the economic pressure on contacts and encourage their cooperation with health officials carrying out surveillance and follow-up activities.
He also stressed that emergency public health interventions should not be treated as the sole responsibility of the FCT, warning that state governments must prepare financially and logistically for similar health emergencies.
“This is not the responsibility of the FCT alone. What we have to do for the FCT, we have to do for any other state, just in case,” he said.
Idris urged state authorities to make adequate provisions for personnel, equipment and other resources needed for contact tracing, isolation and outbreak response within their jurisdictions.
NCDC monitors 53 contacts
The intervention comes as health authorities intensify surveillance following the confirmation of an imported Ebola case in Abuja on October 20.
Nigeria had recorded one confirmed case as of Sunday’s briefing, with 53 primary contacts identified for monitoring, according to Idris.
The contacts include healthcare workers, household members, domestic staff and personnel involved in collecting samples from the patient.
Idris said public health teams were categorising the contacts according to their levels of exposure and conducting regular follow-up checks.
He explained that anyone who developed symptoms during the monitoring period would be assessed promptly and tested where necessary.
The NCDC has also made isolation arrangements for contacts who require them, with health officials monitoring their condition throughout the 21-day period following their last possible exposure.
The agency disclosed that one contact who reported feeling unwell had tested negative, while surveillance and follow-up activities remained ongoing.
Health facilities strengthen preparedness
The NCDC is also strengthening infection prevention and control measures in healthcare facilities, training health personnel and supporting the availability of protective equipment and laboratory supplies.
The confirmed case involves a woman who travelled to Nigeria from Uganda and tested positive for the Bundibugyo strain of the Ebola virus.
According to the timeline provided by health authorities, the woman developed symptoms on October 7, sought medical attention in Abuja on October 11 and was confirmed positive on October 20.
The World Health Organisation has identified the infection as an imported case, while investigations continue to establish the likely source of exposure.
The outbreak has also affected the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Kenya, underscoring the importance of cross-border surveillance, rapid case identification and effective contact tracing.
Lessons from 2014 outbreak
Nigeria is drawing on lessons from its successful containment of the 2014 Ebola outbreak, when coordinated case identification, contact tracing, isolation and other public health measures helped prevent wider transmission.
Idris said the NCDC was strengthening preparedness across states, noting that containing the current outbreak would require cooperation among government agencies, healthcare workers, affected contacts and members of the public.
He urged Nigerians to rely on verified information, avoid spreading rumours and cooperate with public health officials conducting contact tracing and monitoring.
The agency is expected to continue reviewing its response as surveillance activities progress and more information becomes available about the outbreak.
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